All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival
by Rave The Rich
Summary: The 2010 Hoenn Grand Festival brings several stories and drama together at once. Multishipping with primary emphasis on MinamoShipping. A continuation of my one-shot 'Giving of Yourself'. Please read and review. Chapter 42 is here.
1. Signing Up in Slateport

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

For my readers out there, this is somewhat of a continuation of the Valentine's Day MinamoShipping fic that I did entitled 'Giving of Yourself'. This chaptered story is more MultiShipping than anything else, and it centers around the Hoenn Grand Festival in Slateport City. Most of the ships that were mentioned in 'Giving of Yourself' will be featured in this story. Chapter one has Kelly and May going to Slateport City to sign up for the Grand Festival and having an impromptu meeting with another couple. In case you didn't know, this also has BelleShipping in later chapters. Enjoy my 25th fic, folks!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 1- Signing Up in Slateport)

* * *

The signs on the highway make it easy as two plus two to navigate towards the ultimate coordinator's destination of Slateport City and the three day event that makes the city the focal point of the Hoenn region. With only one half of a kilometer to go before longtime girlfriends Kelly Cruz-Marin and May Maple make it to the main arena, they can already hear the loud, cheerful and festive sounds of the biggest gathering of coordinators this year.

From Valentine's Day in mid-February to right now on March 12th, Kelly has made it her mission to get her seventeen-year old girlfriend ready for the Grand Festival through intense training. Along with Norman and Max who both pitched in to help May in her battling skills, Harley and Caroline to assist in first round appeals and Kelly who made nutrition and athletic prowess a must, May has never been more confident than she is right now to hoist the Grand Festival Trophy above her head come Sunday afternoon.

As the two make their way to the entrance gate of the Grand Festival hand in hand, May turns to Kelly and smiles, saying, "I know I've said this before to you and everyone else several times, but…thank you for all of your help these past four weeks. I don't know if I've ever felt this good about my chances in the Grand Festival in…ever!"

"Well, clearly," Kelly says, in an almost bragging fashion, "I am biased this time, because I have my prized horse in the race." May laughs at the analogy before she gives the smiling dame a light shove on the shoulder. "But seriously," Kelly continues, "we all want you to do well here, baby. We've…covered just about everything. You have top-notch pokemon, a great strategy, a prime appeal for tomorrow, and everything is running in near-perfect harmony, but quite frankly, I still have a little issue. It has to do with your…competition."

"Competition?" questions the lady in red. "Girl, what are you talking about?"

The urban seventeen-year old wearing a black shirt and long blue overalls sighs as she stops in front of a few stands outside of the arena selling pokemon bobble heads, keychains and several other odds and ends and explains to May, "You know that both Drew and Dawn are gonna be competing at this Grand Festival, right?"

Looking at her girlfriend with a confused gaze, the bandana-wearing beauty asks her, "Who gives a crap, Kelly? I'm done with Drew, and have been done with him for a long, long time. Let the bastard and his little short skirt-wearing slut do whatever the hell they please."

"Okay, that's just it! Right there!" Kelly points out to the competing coordinator. She then prompts her bandana wearing girlfriend to come with her away from the throng of people.

Once the two are away from the glazes of the faces, Kelly explains to her sporty belle, "They make you mad, so they _are_ getting under your skin!" Gently holding May's head in place, the gloved one explains to her, "All of us have been by your side these past several weeks because we feel that you are the one who deserves to win this year's Grand Festival. Harley, Max, your parents, heck even Ash and Paul pitched in some, and they did it all to help you. All we ask of you in return is to just be calm, cool and collected this weekend, May. If you have those two-timers on your mind at all, then you can't compete at 100 percent."

"Your mind will be wandering, and if you wanna win, you can't have that. You need to _focus_ on the task at hand, and that's winning this Grand Festival. Like I told you, you need to be like the horse in the race wearing blinders. That's why I will be in the suite during the battle portion, because you have to drop all distractions. You have to drop the garbage with Drew, Dawn and everyone else, and just remember what everyone has taught you these last few weeks, and I know you'll be fine. Okay?"

May answers, "Okay," and Kelly gives her a kiss on the forehead telling her girlfriend that she loves her.

"I love you too, Kelly. Now let's get signed up."

The pair does not enter the arena lobby right away, as both Kelly and May are admittedly famished after such a long walk to Slateport City from the last pokemon center. The Petalburg City native especially wanted to get something to eat upon seeing all of the delectable goods in one place, and her belle had no problem treating her to something, reminding her that it is important for the brunette to not overindulge prior to such a grand event.

May agrees, playfully sulking for a second at the fact that she just can't have a little bit of everything. She finally decides on having a single ice cream cone with Kelly from a stand run by a long red-haired voluptuous woman, and a somewhat timid male of the same age. Both of them are clad in blue and yellow aprons, and off to the side promoting the stand is a little, talking mascot wearing a chocolate ice cream cone as his costume. While the pokeblock guru orders mint chocolate chip in a waffle cone, the girl next door takes some more time and finally makes banana sherbet her flavor of choice. She opts to have her treat in a sugar cone.

At the behest of the competing coordinator, both girls opt to enjoy their cones outside in the beautiful twenty-one degree Celsius weather with nary a cloud in the sky. They take less than 10 minutes to finish their respective cones before they make the much anticipated walk inside the lobby of the Slateport City arena.

As they already expected, both Kelly and May came face to face with very fervent activity taking place within the lobby as several coordinators and pokemon were practicing maneuvers, coming up with strategies and getting a look at their potential competition as they go through what amounts to final practice for Saturday's appeals.

Making their way to the registration lines, the pair only has to wait about twenty minutes or so before they come face to face with the attendant.

After they both greet the lady with a good afternoon, she does the same and she also accepts May's pokedex. Running it through the computer, she gets all the information she needs. "So, you are May Maple of Petalburg City. You won the necessary five ribbons for automatic entry. And is this your roommate for the weekend?" she asks, referring to Kelly.

"Yes, ma'am," answers May.

"Very well," the attendant responds. "May I see her ID, please?" Kelly has no problem with the security request, and shows the official her identification without another word.

After a few final instructions, designation of room keys and a temporary Grand Festival identification number of '253' for May, her attendant gives her pokedex back and wishes her good luck for the Grand Festival. The girlfriends thank their attendant and make their way back outside to check out a few more of the stands and vendors.

For about the next two hours, Kelly and May walk through just about every vendor situated around the arena and find numerous odds and ends being sold, including a silver-plated Grumpig key chain, which May bought for her short-haired counterpart. Not much buying of items was done; rather the two were much more apt to take in the atmosphere of this truly grand event. As the pair walked to yet another stand selling pokemon snacks, May comes across a younger boy and girl who have their arms draped across each other's shoulders as they look at the many options available.

Immediately recognizing the two, the coordinator calls out to them, saying, "Hey you guys! I thought you couldn't make it! What's up?"

* * *

A/N: May has apparently spotted some familiar souls, but who are they? Whoever it is, she likes the people, so it can't be Drew or Dawn. Find out next chapter! Until then, it's been Rave!

Oh and please vote on my poll. It's very important to me. Thanks!


	2. Friends With Questions

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Kelly and May travel to and sign up for the Hoenn Grand Festival. May is ready, though Kelly is concerned because May's ex-boyfriend and his new flame are going to compete in this same tournament. After some ice cream, May signs up for the Grand Festival and her living arrangements with Kelly, and they do more shopping with the vendors. After some time, May spots two people near a vendor's stand, where we left off.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 2- Friends With Questions)

* * *

Immediately recognizing the two, the coordinator calls out to them, saying, "Hey you guys! I thought you couldn't make it! What's up?"

Recognizing the voice, the younger teen boy and girl turn around. The boy is clearly dressed for the spring weather in his khaki shorts, black collared shirt patterned with a superhero manga design, dark brown sandals and sunglasses over his eyes. The girl has bright red hair of medium length, jean shorts and a short sleeved burgundy shirt. Like her counterpart, she is also wearing sunglasses over her eyes.

They are elated to see their good friend out and about prior to the Grand Festival and show this emotion by exclaiming, "May!" before they both run up to her and give her a group hug.

While deeply in the embrace, May says, "Oh, Kenny. Zoey, it's so good to see you two again. Thanks for coming." Releasing the hug, the excited coordinator gets a good look at the pair and says, "But I thought that you two were too busy in the Orange Islands to come and see me! What happened?"

As Kenny explains to his platonic friend, "Well, if Zoey hadn't have pulled off one of the greatest upsets in coordinating history at Shamouti Island, we might not have been here to see you in action."

"Kenny, oh! Forgive my rudeness. I'm sorry," interrupts the mild-mannered maiden. May takes a couple of steps backward and literally pulls Kelly into her conversation. "Guys, you remember Kelly, right?"

"The pokeblock girl from Lilycove?" Zoey quips. May nods and as the redhead gets a good look at her from her purple sneakers all the way up to her very developed chest, it's clear to the tomboy who she is. 'Nope. Can't really forget that,' she ponders. Now speaking, she says, "Yeah, I remember you. She's the girl whose organization and products helped Kenny and I out with making pokeblocks."

"Kelly is going to be staying with me this weekend," the coordinator explains. "She's been helping me train for the Grand Festival ever since Valentine's Day, and I don't think I've been more ready for a Grand Festival than I am right now."

"Good!" Kenny exclaims as he drapes his arm across Zoey's shoulder. "Maybe if we're lucky, you can also take down, uh…" The boy who by all accounts is dressed for summer looks at Kelly, who is slashing her throat several times and shaking her head fervidly. To Kenny, it appears that May's good friend doesn't want him to say those two names.

"Who?" asks May.

"Well…you know," the lone male says flustered. Then like a light bulb turning on inside his head "Everyone! That's who! Beat…everyone! Yes!" A few seconds of silence pass before Kenny admits, "I'm lost. What the heck was I talking about?"

Getting the conversation back on topic, the bandana-wearing girl says, "You were telling me, before I rudely interrupted you, how you and Zoey were able to get to Slateport City when I thought you'd be too busy trying to earn the minimum number of ribbons."

"Oh, yeah!" Kenny exclaims, with his memory jogged. "You should've seen it, May. As you know, yours truly already got his required five ribbons for the Orange Islands Grand Festival coming up this May." To this arrogant bragging shown by her boyfriend, Zoey rolls her eyes. Even though she is wearing sunglasses and no one can see this, Kelly and May notice her light scoff. "So, we went to Shamouti for a contest in the hopes that she could earn number five. She did an appeal with her Gastrodon that got a perfect score of thirty. And…Zoey can tell you the rest."

Kenny's boyish girlfriend takes the floor and further elaborates, saying, "From there, I went into the second round. I used Glameow for my battles against my first two opponents, beating them easily."

"Okay," Kelly responds. "Forgive me if that doesn't sound like much of a come from behind victory at this point."

"We're not at the finals yet. That's when things began to change," informs the shining star of pokemon coordinating. Taking her sunglasses off, Zoey continues, "I went up against the bard, Nando. He now has an Exeggutor in his arsenal, by the way. I've always found him to be tough, so by no means did I take this final lightly. Heck, I didn't take my first two opponents lightly, either."

"You can't do that in this line of work," May points out to her friend.

"Darn right," Zoey agrees. "So, it's Nando's Exeggutor versus my Glaceon. Everyone in the contest house thinks that I've got this one in the bag, with my type advantage and whatnot." The story-telling coordinator pauses for a moment before looking the secret lovers into the eyes, and holding up three fingers. "Three moves by Nando, a hyper beam, a solar beam and a psywave in that order, put me down to about one-third of my hit points. Kenny couldn't look at me, and…"

"Whoa! Wait a minute!" interrupts the native of Twinleaf Town. Looking to his girlfriend, he asks her, "You saw me with my head down that day?"

"I see everything, Kenny," Zoey answers, "now may I finish my story, pretty please?" Kenny nods to his independent sweetheart while Kelly and May hold back snickers of their own, and she continues telling her tale. "So I'm down over sixty-five hit points, because I wasn't even able to get in an attack. I don't like to think I came in arrogantly expecting that I wouldn't have to do much against a grass type, but I neglected the advantage of the psychic attacks that Exeggutor possesses."

"I countered Nando's attacks by using several quick attacks. Even though Glaceon clearly wasn't at 100 percent, he was still quite fast. Getting away form Exeggutor was our main goal, and once we were able to avoid him, we then turned those quick attacks into quick tackles, getting Nando's Exeggutor at every angle possible and slowly but surely lowering his point total."

"The clincher to this amazing victory was when the two of us began to combine ice with a lot of the normal attacks. We did ice tackles, ice tail whips, and even an ice bite. Our _coup de grace_ was a blizzard that froze Exeggutor, leaving him unable to move, but perhaps most important, he couldn't attack. All the judges elected to stop the match with less than ten seconds to go before the five minute time limit," Zoey stops speaking for a second to take a case out of her pocket. She shows this case to Kelly and May, saying, "and thanks to that come from behind win of Glaceon, I now have all five of _my_ ribbons."

A voice adds, "Along with me," showing the pair his set of five ribbons, as well. The tomboy looks over at her braggadocio boyfriend and sees that he has a toothy smile that is bright enough to light the city for months on end. She sighs heavily before she hears him talk again. "The only difference between the two is that some of these ribbons came at Zoey's expense. While I've beaten her twice for ribbons in the region, she hasn't beaten me for any."

"You forgot to tell our friends, Kenny," Zoey clarifies for the male, "that I _let_ you win those contest ribbons. If we are going to go to the Grand Festival and if we are going to be a good couple, then there has to be some give and take at times. Quite honestly, if I _really_ wanted to embarrass your arrogant behind, then I would beat you…very badly. So badly, you'll be crying for your mommy."

Kenny slyly responds, "Oh, just like last—," but he can't finish his retort, as his mouth is being covered by the hand of his item.

"Well, I'm sorry that we can't stay much longer, you two!" Zoey interrupts her beau, while explaining the situation to the now shocked girlfriends. Leaning into Kenny's ear, Zoey asks him, "What the hell is your problem? That's _our_ private business!" Turning back to Kelly and May, Zoey saves face by saying, "The time just flies here, doesn't it? I mean, how long have we been talking together?"

"Not that long, really," answers Kelly, plainly.

"Well, I apologize, but we really have to go," Zoey tells the two girls from the Hoenn region before she drags her tease of a boyfriend off to some other vendor's spot.

The entire scene that just took place before the eyes of the undercover duo was interesting to say the least. So interesting, in fact, that both Kelly and May still have their mouths wide open in stunned surprise of what they have borne witness to.

"They…are kinda weird," Kelly admits, as the words take some time to form in her mouth. The statement gets her girlfriend chuckling before it grows to laughter, causing both girls to laugh out loud in the crowd.

After settling down a tad, May tells Kelly, "Oh, damn! I needed that. And you're right about those two. Kenny and Zoey are not what you would consider your regular run of the mill couple. Zoey is clearly the 'boy' in that relationship and even though Kenny at times tries to assert his manhood when it's not necessary, they really are madly in love with each other. And I'm somewhat responsible for it! They always make me feel good, even though they'll never compare to a certain someone."

"Oh, really?" Kelly asks, playing along with her girlfriend's flirtatious guessing game. "And just who would this 'certain someone' be?"

"Well…she's in her late teens, very affectionate, stunningly beautiful from the inside out, and my girlfriend. What do you think?" May questions.

"I think that…I hope you're not with my evil twin behind my back," responds the buxom one.

May laughs once again before telling Kelly to "Shut up! Come here," and the two coordinators share a very implicit embrace in the midst of the extensive crowd.

* * *

"What's the big idea telling those two, our friends, about our sex life?" Zoey lectures to Kenny, who is sitting on a park bench away from the two Hoenn girls.

"I didn't say anything about our sex life," Kenny replies rascally. "I _almost_ said something about our sex life, and 'almost' only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades."

"We're not playing horseshoes, and the only hand grenade I'm throwing is gonna be the one that lands in your hair if you don't slow your role," Zoey threateningly informs the extrovert. "I can't believe you almost squealed that…"

Kenny is only half listening to the rest of Zoey's lecture as he takes a look at his good friend, May and her good friend Kelly in a unique position. Both are in each other's arms…like they were a couple. 'Wait. That can't be right,' Kenny ponders. 'May hasn't shown any interest in girls before…I think.' This speculation is all but squashed once Kenny looks at his best female friend grab Kelly's rear end from behind her back. She keeps this vice-like hold on her girlfriend for more than just a passing second.

"…and our business should remain our business, okay?" Zoey asks, ending her rant. Frustrated that she didn't get an immediate answer from her boyfriend, she asks him, "Did you hear _anything_ I just said, boy?"

Kenny responds back, "Hot damn, Zoey! Look!" he exclaims, pointing in Kelly and May's direction. Curious like a cat, the top coordinator turns around to find the two girls from earlier walking to one of the hotel complexes.

Unimpressed, Zoey turns to the sitting young male and asks, "What? It's just Kelly and May walking to their rooms, probably."

"Hand in hand, Zoey?" The teen girl turns back around to see if she missed it, and indeed, the pair is walking to the dorms while holding each other's hands and with their fingers interlocked.

Zoey is still not impressed, and asks Kenny, "So? I used to do that all the time with Dawn when we traveled through Johto. It doesn't necessarily mean that they are girlfriends, even though I _did_ have feelings for her at one time. And besides, don't you think this is something that May would trust us with after all we've been through?"

"Zoey, I swear on my Empoleon," Kenny rebuts, "I saw May grabbing Kelly's butt and flirting with her earlier. Actually, I should have said that first. That's…_very _friendly if you ask me."

"Really?" asks the girl with her sunglasses now on the top of her head. Giving the scenario some thought Zoey, doesn't notice her boyfriend get up from the bench. "Wow! You're right. That is a more than friendly gesture."

"Hey, Kelly! May, wait up!" Kenny requests while running in an attempt to get both girls' attention. "I wanna ask you two something!"

"Kenny, no!" Zoey pleads, running herself to stop her boyfriend from sticking his nose where it doesn't belong.

* * *

A/N: What does Kenny want to ask, as if you didn't know? Will Kelly and May tell the truth? And who else will the couple run into on Grand Festival Friday? Find out in the next chapter!

Until then, it's been Rave!


	3. Good Girls Out and Eavesdropping 101

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

May spots her good friends and couple Kenny and Zoey, who were able to come to the Hoenn Grand Festival, because Zoey defeated Nando at Shamouti Island to win her fifth contest ribbon. Kelly and May see first hand the one of a kind interactions that Zoey and Kenny have with each other and are driven to laughter on multiple occasions. Because of the lone boy's big mouth, Zoey has to cut her meeting with Kelly and May short and drag Kenny away from the conversation. After being scolded by Zoey for talking too much, Kenny sees May and Kelly sexually flirting with each other and gets up to ask them a question where we have left off.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 3- Good Girls Out and Eavesdropping 101)

* * *

"Hey, Kelly! May, wait up!" Kenny requests while running in an attempt to get both girls' attention. "I wanna ask you two something!"

"Kenny, no!" Zoey pleads, running herself to stop her boyfriend from sticking his nose where it doesn't belong.

Upon hearing the sixteen-year-old call out their names, Kelly and May stop in their tracks. The pair turns around and they find Kenny meandering through the forest of walking beings to get to his ultimate destination. Once the young man makes his way to the pair, he says, "I'm sorry, girls. Something…has been on my mind. If it's not my place, please…just let me know."

Meanwhile, as this scene between the coordinators from the Hoenn and Sinnoh regions takes place, a duo enters the gates that lead to the Grand Festival arena. With the boy's arm draped across the shoulders of the younger girl, Drew Emerson and Dawn Berlitz make their way to their ultimate destination at long last. While the boyfriend and girlfriend are indeed excited at the opportunity before them, Drew admits to having more than just a few second thoughts.

For one, the shorter male who is wearing all black with a green, unzipped hooded sweatshirt and black highlights in his signature green hair knows full well that one of the participants in this Grand Festival will be his ex-girlfriend May Maple, who he hasn't heard anything from in the past several months. While he does have feelings for his current girlfriend, they don't go too far beyond physical attraction that was spearheaded by Dawn's appearance and her accented attire. It's a style of dress that hasn't changed that much since she began her journey as a coordinator some years back, with the only real additions being makeup and some darker colors included with her otherwise feminine motif to match her boyfriend.

Drew would like nothing more than to try and make things work with May again, and he let these sentiments be known in several letters to the Petalburg City native, none of which she has responded back to. It truly is a case of the teen not knowing what he has until it's gone. Over this time he's gotten to know Dawn at an intimate level, both emotionally and physically, but his mind has often been caught wandering as his thoughts have been centered on an old flame, like they are right now.

As the pair checks their surroundings, Dawn speaks up first, exclaiming with her one of a kind confidence, "Ah, we finally made it, Drew! _Now_ it's time to show these fakes from the Hoenn region what pokemon coordinating is all about!" Dawn, in this statement, actually makes an off-handed remark about May, who she knows will also be competing for the title of Grand Festival champion this weekend, as well.

"What?" Drew asks, not really paying attention to what is current flame is talking about. For the heck of it, the boy clad in black garb replies with a bored tone, "Yeah, sure. We'll show them, Dawn. Together."

"Wait a minute! Look over there!" Dawn requests of Drew as the coordinator from Twinleaf points to a few familiar faces and then steps back away from the ardent commotion so that neither of the two can be seen from their distance.

* * *

"I wasn't that sure when I saw what I thought I saw," Kenny admits to the two older teens, "_until_ you guys made your way to…wherever you two were about to go just now. I noticed the chemistry between you two while speaking to you and seeing you off in the distance." This causes May to gasp softly, but luckily Kenny does not notice the now concerned expression on her face. Did May and Kelly let it slip once again about their lingering romantic displays of affection for each other? It certainly seems like that is the case.

"So, again, you don't have to answer this if you don't want to, but…out of curiosity…are you two…lesbians? I mean, are you a couple?"

"Damn it, Kenny! Enough!" Zoey interjects, finally escaping the human processions and coming face to face with her boyfriend and his varied company.

"Look, you two," Zoey says to May and Kelly, feeling for both of them after hearing what is a very embarrassing question to ask. "I'm really sorry about this. As you can tell, Kenny has a tendency to…run his big mouth when it's not necessary. You don't have to answer that."

Turning her boyfriend around and facing Kenny, she begins, "Look. It's their business what they do together and there's alone."

"And I realize that, Zoey!" Kenny interjects, "But don't you think that this would be something that we'd know? I mean, just like you said, if we're the good friends that we all claim to be, would this even be a problem?"

"We still don't know if they're gay or not, so in that respect, there wouldn't be much of a problem either way!" argues the tomboy, with both parties seemingly ignoring the subjects at hand in the ladies in purple and red. "But look at it in Kelly and May's shoes! How would _you_ like it if you had someone speculating about your sexuality without much evidence?"

"Without much evidence that _you_ haven't seen is what you mean, _Zoelie_!" Zoey's boyfriend retorts. The girl grunts in response to being called by her pet name and Kenny confidently continues, "I, on the other hand, have seen plenty of evidence, and one smoking gun which I feel is enough to draw my own educated conclusion, Zoey. When I see a girl grabbing another girl's behind and she holds onto it for more than just a few seconds, I don't think that she's 'just playing' or it's just a matter of girls being girls. I pretty sure that she might be a lesbian, and for damn good reason!"

"Oh my God, Kenny!" Zoey nearly screams out in frustration wanting to pull out the hairs on her head. "You _really_ don't get girls, do you? Do you? No, you know what? Don't answer that, because I already know the answer!"

"Then why ask the question?" asks the male, cleverly.

Looking at yet another one of Zoey and Kenny's lover's spats at length, Kelly and May are treated to interactions equitable to people that have spent decades together without fail.

The only reaction that the lovers give off in response to this verbal back and forth from their friends is smiling. It's silly, petty and ridiculous that they are getting into a fight about their friend's sexual orientation, but at the same time, they realize that it's a case of these two opposites seemingly attracting the way only they know how.

"You know what? You were right, Kelly," May affirms to her girlfriend as Zoey and Kenny continue to joust, this time about what classifies as romantic flirting. "They are kind of weird, but at the same time, they're real cool, too."

Leaning into May's near ear, Kelly whispers to her longtime flame, "Hey May. They're our friends, and they said so themselves that it doesn't matter if we're together or not. Heck, I'm…surprised you went this long without telling them with all that you've went through with Kenny and Zoey. And besides, they won't squeal. They're too busy with each other to really be concerned about us. What do you say, girlfriend?"

May doesn't say anything to Kelly. Instead, she takes her girlfriend's hand and walks over to the debating duo, who is now arguing the core emotional differences between men and women as it relates to Kinsey's generations-old reports on human sexual behavior.

"Okay, then," Zoey continues in her debate with the loudmouth. "You'll agree with me that there are levels of sexuality and that it's very rare for people to be completely homosexual or completely heterosexual, like me. You know that I'm…I'm pretty much bi. And even you talk about..."

"Hold it! Time out!" Kenny interrupts his studious girlfriend. "You were actually gonna blurt out some of my physical attractions towards other guys?"

"Well, I didn't think you'd mind, _Kenneth_," Zoey responds slyly. Lowering her voice as she goes on, the girl continues, "After all, we're talking about the same person who doesn't mind at times alluding to the fact that he likes to be on the bottom and has a spanking fetish! So I guess when it comes to everyone else, they are fair game, but when it gets down to it, there are still some skeletons that you like to keep in your closet, even though you are quite an open book. You just have a couple of pages stuck together, that's all."

"Uh, guys," May speaks softly to get the attention of her argumentative allies. Zoey and Kenny are finally liberated from their back and forth banter, and as far as May is concerned, it's a good thing. After all, had the two even talked about the potential lesbian couple in the last couple of minutes? "Hey guys, remember me…" the Maple girl then turns to the bright-headed one and finishes her question, saying, "…and my girlfriend?" Turning to Kenny, May affirms his speculation by telling him, "The answer to your question is 'yes', Kenny. Kelly and I are together, and we have been for quite a while now."

While Zoey looks at the scene before her in shock, including the revelation from her good friend, Kenny gives off an assured smile as what he thought was the truth turned out to become so.

"So, here's my question to you two," May looks at her friends, seriously. "Are you okay with this? You alluded to the fact that neither of you had a problem with this, but I want to make sure."

"It's your life," Kenny answers right away. "And who am I to stand in the way of you two? If Kelly makes you happy, May, then more power to you both. I think it's cute, honestly."

Expecting Zoey's response, May, Kelly and Kenny look to the girl and see that her face surprisingly gives off some apprehension to the entire idea. Zoey doesn't even respond back to the Petalburg girl's question.

"Uh, Zoey?" Kelly questions of the tomboy, "May asked you a question. What do you think about the two of us being together?"

It still takes some time, but Zoey answers the cheerful girl, "Honestly, I don't know. I'm…okay with it, if that's what you want to know, but…I thought that we were better friends than that! I mean, Kenny was right about something for once." To this so-called compliment from his girlfriend, Kenny puts his hands on his hips and scoffs. "You'd think that with all we've been through and the crap with 'you know who', that things like this wouldn't even matter, but you kept this secret for almost a year and a half! Why would this be such a big deal?"

From afar, two pairs of very interested and focused eyes lay their blue and green irises upon the sight before them. Remaining inconspicuous even in the midst of the crowd, both Drew and Dawn look and listen in a complete and total daze knowing this private information.

Dawn can't help but open her mouth in disbelief, and whisper, "Wow! I never knew the wench had it in her. No wonder she played hard to get with you for so long, Drew!"

Drew is nowhere near as cruel in his thoughts or in his words as he tells Dawn, "Don't be so shallow, Dawn! Can't you see? She is starving for some attention. She gave up on guys because I was a real ass at one time, and she apparently thinks she can find it in some girl."

"Why do you even give a damn about her, Drew?"

"Think about it, Dawn! I was the last person she was with before…this!" Drew exclaims to his present item as he walks away from her and the scene that just took place involving his one true love.

* * *

A/N: Oh, dear! Now Drew and Dawn know about Kelly and May! What will they do with this information, and how does this revelation really affect Drew? And what do we make of Zoey's 'problem' with May and Kelly not being honest with her? Will they be able to explain their reasoning? Find out next time!

Until then, it's been Rave!


	4. Labels Don't Matter

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Kenny feels as if he has to ask Kelly and May if they are a couple and he does. Zoey stops her friends from the Hoenn region from answering the question and gets into an exaggerated tiff with her boyfriend. May finally informs the two that she and Kelly are indeed girlfriends, and while Kenny almost expected it after seeing the two flirt earlier, Zoey is not nearly as accepting.

Being bisexual herself, Zoey has no problem with her friend being in a relationship with another girl, but is jaded by the fact that May didn't say something to her about this earlier. Drew and Dawn, who have just arrived in Slateport City, eavesdrop on this entire exchange between friends. While Dawn shows spiteful indifference towards the entire scenario, Drew shows some regret, believing he might have had a hand in her incorrectly thinking that she's a lesbian because of his past shortcomings.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 4- Labels Don't Matter)

* * *

"You'd think that with all we've been through and the crap with 'you know who'," Zoey says, "that things like this wouldn't even matter, but you kept this secret for almost a year and a half! Why would this be such a big deal?"

"Zoey," May begins in her attempt to defend herself, "it…it's me, Zoey. Even after all these years, I still get quite embarrassed about things that I should _not_ be embarrassed about in the least bit. I had a cheating boyfriend and while there were those out there that thought that we'd be solid as a rock, it just didn't work. He was an asshole, plain and simple, but I'm not ashamed to tell people about that because through that one bad relationship, I've learned so much about life, struggle, and…true love."

"I guess no matter what my situation, be it past, present or future," the coordinator continues as she bears her soul, "love and affection will still be kind of embarrassing for me. I will say that being with Kelly has been good for me, though. She has never been one to shy away from feelings of the heart with a few exceptions, and in a way, it's rubbed off on me. I've told a few people about us, and now you two are…I suppose you could say that you're part of our secret circle."

"Again, I can't stress enough how good Kelly has been for me. She's given me time to come out, because she knows that coming out is a process and that no two people coming out of the closet are exactly alike. Coming out takes progress over time, Zoey, and slowly but surely, I'm making strides. My brother and his boyfriend know, my parents know, and now, my best friends know. I realize that this might be a…weak defense, but it's all I've got. Even though I'll say in closing that I never meant to keep this from either of you forever. I just needed the right time…for me."

The most stubborn girl out of the three has to admit that May makes some very good points with the things that she is saying. When Zoey knew deep down inside that she had feelings for the same sex, she didn't go out of her way to make sure that all of her family and friends knew about the attractions right away. It took some time and a great deal of trial and error to figure out who would take it correctly and realize that this is something that Zoey and Zoey alone has to come to terms with, and who it would be best to just not tell and to leave well enough alone.

Opening her mouth for the first time in a few minutes, the butch girl reveals to May, "You know, I don't often say this to…anyone, but, I'm sorry. You're absolutely right, May. Even though we're great friends and have been through a lot together…" Zoey has trouble finding the right words to say in this instance. She gives up by throwing her hands in the air and elects to blurt out, "…coming out can be a real bitch! Even though I'm bisexual myself, it's just as hard for me everyday. I had no problem telling my good friends about it, but I gotta realize that I'm not like everyone else and everyone else isn't like me."

"I agree with Zoey," Kenny chimes in. "When it comes to something like coming out, what's good for the goose isn't necessarily good for the gander. I know that it took me a while to tell my folks. I mean, when I realized I, like Zoey, am bisexual." While this half-revelation doesn't surprise May in the least bit as she knew about it beforehand, Kelly is rocked from the strands of her bright purple hair all the way down to the soles of her color-coordinated shoes, as she had not heard the two of them in one of their arguments from just a few minutes earlier.

"Wait a minute!" Kelly interjects. "Both of you are bisexual…and together?" she asks, pointing to the pair in sunglasses.

"I'm not a big fan of labels," Kenny admits from the get go. "I believe that each and every one of us is a little bit of everything wrapped into one. We all just have a few parts of us that are more…accentuated than others, but yeah. Zoey and I are both bi. It's never really an issue, though." Wrapping his arm around both of the outdoorsy girl's shoulders, Kenny continues, "We both know and accept these attractions and have an open relationship that we feel allows us to become even more connected with one another. We keep no secrets from each other whatsoever."

"That's the way it should be!" May exclaims, giving her good friends a thumbs up. "My mom even said something to that extent. She told me that I should have trusted my friends with this, because they are my real friends, and I don't think I could ask for more understanding friends than you two."

"And you guys do make a great point," Kelly says, piggybacking on May's words. "We are a little bit of everything. If you love each other, words like 'gay', 'lesbian', 'bisexual', and what have you wouldn't even matter. What a way to live when labels don't carry any weight and instead, people matter."

"Wow!" May compliments her girlfriend. "How true, Kelly. How true." Now turning to Zoey, the top coordinator asks her friend, "So is everything alright between us?"

"Yeah," Zoey smiles back to her friend. "Once I got my head back on straight, I realized that this is something that all of us have to do when we're ready and no sooner."

After a few seconds of silence, Kenny realizes that the foursome has hit a point in the conversation, where there is very little left to be said by anyone else. "Hey guys," he begins with his trademark sly smile, "wanna hug it out?"

Giving her boyfriend a somewhat questionable look, Zoey nevertheless turns to the two girls directly across from her, and with her right arm high in the air, declares, "Group hug!" before Kenny, Kelly and May all come together in a pact of their one of a kind friendship.

Letting go after a good twenty seconds or so, Kelly and May inform Zoey and Kenny that they really have to check into their room and get some rest for tomorrow's appeals. The coordinators from Sinnoh give the girlfriends their respective farewells before they go on their way as well.

As the pair walks once more through the still heavy crowd of vendors and people, Kenny notices after about ten minutes of walking that Zoey doesn't look like her cheerful self.

Asking the girl what's wrong, she admits to her mate, "I think I was far too hard on May. I mean, really unnecessarily hard on her."

"_Chica_, don't worry about it. May's a big girl. She'll get over it," Kenny playfully assures Zoey, using yet another one of his pet names to which the hoyden shakes her head in fervent disapproval of the handle.

"What's wrong with my real name, Kenny? Why all of these pet names?"

The big teaser looks at Zoey, almost taken aback by this question. "Nothing's wrong with it. I just think that nicknames are cute, and I want to see if one of them sticks. Eventually, we'll find one that we both can agree with. I gave Dawn the nickname 'Dee Dee' if you remember."

"Well," begins the girl, "at least when it comes to me, you have _slightly _better taste in names when it comes to me."

"Everything is better when it comes to you, Zoey," compliments the slightly shorter of the two. Remembering something in the back of his head, Kenny asks, very much interested in the answer, "Say, Zoey. Are our 'friends' gonna be here like we talked about earlier?"

"Yeah. I texted them both, but they said they wouldn't be here until very early Saturday morning, so unfortunately, we'll have to wait until that night to have our fun," Zoey explains.

"Bummer," Kenny laments. "Hey. Before we head back to the hotel, you wanna grab something to eat?"

"Sure," Zoey answers. "I'll treat," she adds and the two continue their walk to some of Slateport City's finest dining areas to fill up their bellies begging for nourishment.

* * *

A/N: Now that that's been settled, it's almost time for bed! Next chapter will have Drew and Dawn going to bed and having a conversation, and the chapter after that will have Kelly and May going to bed.

So who are these two 'friends' of Kenny and Zoey? Find out in future chapters!

Until then, it's been Rave!


	5. Television Romance

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

May explains to Zoey that she still finds love embarrassing, and that coming out would be a process. She says that Kelly is helping her become less flustered with matters of the heart. Zoey admits that May is right, knowing that it took her time to tell her folks that she is bisexual. Kenny clarifies the conversation by admitting that he is also bi, which catches Kelly off guard, but he explains that his relationship with Zoey is open and honest. The four friends group hug, sealing their pact, and go their separate ways. Zoey is somewhat despondent, thinking that she was too hard on May, but Kenny assures her that May will recover.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 5- Television Romance)

* * *

Snuggled somewhat close together in the single bed of their room for the weekend, Drew and Dawn are in the covers with the lights off and are looking at the high-definition television just across their hotel room at the start of the eleven o'clock newscast for the local Slateport City affiliate. The couple expects that the station will more than likely show a lengthy piece on the Grand Festival, and would like to see their names and faces on television once again.

Traveling as often as they do with the exception of the television screens that would show telecasts of contests, gym battles and other sports in the area, the pair does not get the chance to see their work like everyone else does. Over the past one to two years, they have seen much less of their work as coordinators and a lot more shots of the pair in public. It seemed that their romance became the stuff of tabloids and entertainment news programs worldwide.

While it is quite annoying for the two of them to be such eye candy for the pokemon paparazzi, they are fortunate to avoid a lot of those muckraking press that seek to destroy the couple through the media. Nevertheless, the fact that they are the power couple of the sport does not affect what brought them so much fame and fortune. They remain top coordinators even with the added attention that they notice looking at the bright screen in front of them.

"And here's what people are talking about tonight!" the male anchor begins with enthusiasm.

Turning to the female anchor to the left of him, the middle-aged blonde woman in a black pants suit continues, "Slateport City's annual Grand Festival begins tomorrow with over 300 coordinators coming together in an effort to fill just sixteen spots on Sunday's single elimination tournament to crown the new Grand Festival champion."

Switching between lines on the teleprompter, the male anchor in his conservative dress of a black suit, white shirt and blue tie continues, "Even though the main competition does not begin until tomorrow, as Adam Barnett explains, activities prior to the crowing of the new champion are what make this yearly event truly one of a kind."

Drew and Dawn watch as the film switches, and they are immediately greeted with an earlier interview of the emerald-haired star speaking to the station with Dawn right next to him as he says, "This never gets old. The feeling of going here or any other major hub for coordinating all around the world doesn't die, and once you get just a piece of the Grand Festival or the opportunity for greatness in the craft, that doesn't die, either."

As the film then cuts to several images of the vendors, food, drinks, other coordinators and people out and about in the city and the reporter continues with a voice-over explaining the history, pageantry and spectacle of the two day event, Dawn comments with almost a coo in her voice, "I tell you, television will never do this handsome face justice." The younger girl even caresses Drew's near cheek as a sign of her affection, but the brooding soul doesn't even give his girlfriend a facial response, much less a verbal one.

Growing very vexed with Drew, the otherwise bright light asks, "Okay, what the hell is it now, Drew? I thought that once I ran up to you and we talked about this, we agreed that we wouldn't give May or Kelly our attention, as if the two lesbos deserve it."

"What makes you think that I'm thinking about May?" Drew defends, "And why do you have to resort to name calling?"

"Again, I ask," Dawn retorts, increasing even more in frustration, "why do you care about them at all? May is in your past. She is your_ ex_-girlfriend. I am your _current_ girlfriend."

"Because, you know…"

"And before you say it," the angered girl interrupts, "you did not turn May Maple gay. I don't think there is such a thing as turning someone gay. I think that the bitch had it in her from the very beginning and used you as a pawn so no one would have been the wiser. So quit beating yourself up about this, alright? It's just pointless bullshit! Just because some girl might run up to _me_ and give me a kiss doesn't mean that I'm gonna want to return the favor."

"It's not that cut and dry, Dawn," Drew attempts to clarify to his steaming hot belle. "The fact is I really don't think that she's gay."

"Drew," Dawn speaks placing her right hand over her forehead and squeezing her left thumb and index finger over the bridge of her nose. "Do the goddamn grammar school math. May Maple, a girl, plus Kelly Cruz-Marin, another girl, equals _couple!_ And that means that both of them are in a _gay_ relationship, and to be in a gay relationship, well," Dawn play thinks about the problem in her head and finally answers, "you have to be gay!"

"I know! It's just that…"

"You know what, screw her, Drew!" yells the girl, who has now scooted her way out of the bed and onto the floor. "She's all you've been talking about these past four weeks, and I'm getting pretty damn sick of it! Why in the world would you spend all of your time thinking and talking about her when you have me? Unless…" Dawn considers the reasons why men would talk about women that were not their wives or girlfriends, and comes to the conclusion that, "You still have feelings for her, don't you?"

"What?" Drew exclaims, as he's been caught off guard by the question. "No way! I don't know _where_ you get that idea, Dawn, but it's not true!"

"Then how in the world do you explain a fear of thinking that you might have turned your ex-girlfriend lesbian, you pouting whenever any conversation about May is begun, and you always wanting to see May on the television for contests and the like? Huh? Explain that, Drew!"

"She's our competition!" Drew points out to his almost irate girlfriend.

"Not buying it, Drew! You know why, because I don't hear you talking about anyone else here at the Grand Festival!" Dawn loudly informs the shaken coordinator. Turning away from Drew for the slightest of minutes, the Twinleaf town native begins to let her true emotions out as she sheds tears, refusing to let the older male see her in her present state. "I don't believe this. I thought we talked about this, and I thought we settled this for good. I think, for once, that Dawn Berlitz can finally have something that's all her own. Something that my mother, the media, or May Maple can't take from me, but it seems like everything has a way of…making me fall on my face and looking like a damn fool in the process." Bringing her head down and crying, Dawn feels something touch her shoulders and utter the word 'baby' into her ear.

Turning around and pushing off the hands on her shoulders, Dawn points the fingers at the now dejected coordinator and screams right into his face, "I am not your goddamn baby! I'm not a child either, and I don't have to stand for this shit! I'm out of here! Good night, Drew!" As Dawn finishes her rant, she turns away from Drew once more before going to the door of her room and exiting to the hallway outside with a violent slam of the door. Dawn leaves Drew in the room with nothing more than his wandering thoughts centered on his supposed love lost.

The only sounds inside of the room are those coming from the television, and one voice in particular causes Drew to turn away from the door and back to the clear picture on the TV.

"It really is a great time for all pokemon coordinators here in the Hoenn region," says the voice of Drew's ex-girlfriend May, who is holding Kelly by the shoulder while talking to the reporter and giving off a very cheerful vibe in the process. "Personally, I really think that this is my weekend. My trainer and best friend Kelly and some others have prepared me well, and I've never felt this confident in my chances before now."

The LaRousse City native is shaking as the reality of the situation becomes crystal clear to him. Right there on the television, Kelly and May are giving each other 'the look'; the same look that Drew would give May when they were together and vice versa. He knows it's true, even if it's not stated outright.

He realizes that he may never be able to know or experience the type of love and affection that he had with the prominent gym leader's daughter. He sheds two tears before he turns off the television and throws the remote control and the telephone across the room. Drew does this before slouching down at the foot of his hotel bed crying out his soul. The young man is left alone with nothing but his thoughts to ponder, though they don't do much to heal his emotional wounds left behind after seeing something so earth-shattering.

* * *

A/N: Aww. I kind of feel bad for Drew in this instance. Kind of. Like I said in the last chapter, the next chapter is Kelly and May's bedtime.

One of my readers said that the next chapter will have something big. Actually, that's gonna be in chapter seven. What this thing is…you'll have to read, but by the time chapter seven ends, Friday ends, and Saturday morning begins. More characters will appear and more stories come to the forefront as we get closer and closer to Grand Festival time.

Until next time, it's been Rave!


	6. Those Many, Many Distractions

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Drew and Dawn watch Friday evening's eleven o'clock newscast, and while Dawn is content with admiring her main squeeze on the screen, Drew seems very distant throughout the conversation. Dawn accurately says that it has to do with May, and she becomes very ticked off with Drew. Deducting that Drew still has feelings for his ex, Dawn decides to leave her hotel room. Drew becomes upset as he watches the TV once more and sees Kelly and May give each other 'the look'. He spends the remainder of his night crying at the foot of his bed.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 6- Those Many, Many Distractions)

* * *

Walking out of the bathroom of the room of her living quarters for the weekend wearing the hotel's complimentary white terry cloth robe tied across her hourglass figure, Kelly Cruz-Marin spots her committed girlfriend sitting down at the end of the bed, which is directly positioned in front of a television.

May, who has the television on The Weather Channel to check Slateport City's forecasts for the next two days, turns to see her partner near the doorway with her short hair now coming straight down her face and partially covering her lustrous blue eyes and other smooth features of her cream colored skin.

Kelly greets the sitting girl by informing her, "The shower's ready."

Nodding back to her girlfriend, May says, "Thanks Kelly, but I think I'm gonna just take one in the morning." May turns her attention back to the television screen and less than two seconds later turns the station to a late-night talk show.

"Something on your mind?" questions the standing girl.

Taking in a deep breath before turning back to Kelly, the coordinator, who is currently dressed in her fuchsia pajamas, and explains to her, "I'm just a bit surprised. I would have thought for sure that by now we'd see…" she takes a second before spitting out the word, "_them _today. As screwed up as it sounds, I would have hoped to have seen them and then be done with it so I can focus on why I'm here, like you talked about earlier. I know they are in Slateport. I just saw them on TV while you were in the shower."

Walking closer to May, the clean coordinator assures her flame, "Sweetheart, don't even worry about them. We'll see them sooner or later." Hinting to May, the bandana wearer pats her lap three times, silently allowing Kelly to lay her entire body across May's lap and the foot of the bed itself, which she does.

The relaxed girl with her straight, flowing hair falling short of the middle of May's ankle continues while looking up to the beautiful face before her, saying, "And when we do see them, just…make an effort to extend the olive branch. I know you probably don't want to hear that, but it's an option. If they aren't cordial, then…don't try and fight them, either. We'll leave that to your arsenal of world-class pokemon."

Stroking the hair of the buxom beauty, May says to her, "Okay. You've got yourself a deal," before she moves her hand up some to cup the robed girl's cheek.

On a whim, Kelly asks her companion, "Is there something else on your mind, love?"

May laughs for a second. "You're reading me again," she lets Kelly know. Getting to the question at hand, the coordinator says, "I…I don't know, honestly. I mean, this time we're spending together would more or less be like the calm before the storm for coordinators. I have tonight with you, and there's the appeal on Saturday morning or afternoon, and if I do well in that, I go through to Sunday and the final sixteen. I've got my supporters Zoey and Kenny by my side until the end, my folks are gonna be here, _your_ folks are gonna be here, Harley and my brother, Ash and Paul in Pallet, and Erica and Joshua should be here if they're not busy."

The speaking girl continues, wrapping up this theory that's been on her mind, "I think that…they'd also be somewhat of a distraction, even more so than you know who."

"How do you figure that?" Kelly asks after she stretches her legs for a second. "I'm not necessarily disagreeing with what you're saying. It's just that…I've got these theories of my own about those types of distractions."

As the teen leans her head in closer to May's chest, the coordinator, who has Kelly in a cradle position explains, "Well, there are those pokemon coordinators that go out there to impress these people that I talked about; your friends and loved ones. I know you alluded to that a few weeks back about how I should only be interested in impressing myself while on stage and especially doing appeals that I would be proud to say are mine, but…it's hard not to have these people in your mind when you go through the competitive motions. Their words of encouragement and support ring in your head like a dinner bell, and when you're out there…you see them in your thoughts and mind and go to them and their words for guidance."

"Okay," Kelly interrupts, pulling herself away from her girlfriend's chest. "About what you said there on words of encouragement. You make a great point about them and how they can be a distraction. The fact is that there is no such thing as a good distraction, like your family and friends, or a bad distraction, like Drawn. There are only…"

"Hold it. 'Drawn'?" May questions with some bewilderment.

"Yeah, that's the nickname that the media made up for Drew and Dawn." As the Lilycove resident elaborates to May, "It's a portmanteau, like when you take two words and combine them to form one that retains the meaning of both."

Because she still doesn't quite understand what is being told to her, May gives her sweetheart an unsure look. Kelly further clarifies by saying, "Some examples are smog from 'smoke' and 'fog', brunch from 'breakfast' and 'lunch', and drawn comes from 'Drew' and 'Dawn'. A lot of pokemon names are portmanteaus. One example that comes to mind immediately is Blaziken, which is just a combination of 'blazing' and 'chicken'."

"All right," says the Petalburg City native. "I think I understand, but honestly, that's not even…relatively creative when you really think about it. And it's somewhat confusing to boot. I hope they come up with something better than that for us. Oh well, it's no problem. Not like I'm gonna worry my pretty head about it at night."

"Good for you!" Kelly commends. "And like I said earlier, there is no such thing as a good or bad distraction. There are only distractions, and the more you work to relieve yourself of them, the better you'll be prepared for tomorrow."

Sitting up and looking the other girl directly in the eyes, the robed one says, "I have faith in you to do this, May, because I believe in you. We all believe in you, and I believe in us. I love you more than I love my own family at times."

"Are you trying to say something is on _your_ mind now?"

Turning away for a bit, realizing the difficult subject that she's about to bring to the table, Kelly explains, "Honestly, yes. May, we've been together for…quite a while now. I know that both of us are only seventeen years old, but…just think about what I'm about to ask you and be frank with me." Holding both of May's hands in her hands, Kelly asks the girl, "Have you _ever_ felt the way you feel about me for anyone else before?"

With her head down for only a split second while kneeling down in the bed of the dimly lit room, May admits, "No, I haven't," and Kelly notices that her girlfriend's voice is breaking just a tad in her answer. Bringing her head back down, May begins to breathe heavily, wondering just what Kelly wants to know. "What are you—what are you trying to ask me, Kelly? I mean…I'm not ready for—I think I know where you're going, but at the same time, I'm not quite sure."

"I'm just wondering, May," Kelly clarifies. "Like I said, we're young, but has the thought of us…getting married ever entered your mind?"

May has to catch her breath, because it seems as if once more, her girlfriend has been reading her mind. With one tear falling down her face, the coordinator admits, "Every day. I think about us getting married, growing old together, and even having a family of our own. That has always lingered inside of me, Kelly, but…"

As the tears of either happiness or pure unexplainable emotion continue to flow from the eyes of the Maple girl, it is crystal clear that the two mates are on the same plane as far as what they both want for their future. With her eyes closed, May has stopped speaking, but she can feel something pressing against her face. Opening her eyes, she sees the breathtaking site of her lover wiping her tears away from her face and she smiles back in approval of Kelly's concern for her own well being.

"Now, what were you saying?" Kelly asks, taking May's hands back into the gentle grip of her own.

Getting herself and her emotions back under some level of control, May answers Kelly, "I've pondered marriage so much, but we're so young, I often have to take a step back and consider myself and everything that goes into making a long lasting and effective marriage. After all, this isn't something I can take lightly at all. Until death do us part is serious business. We'd have to live with each other for a while, get used to being around one another for longer than a few weeks like we've been doing for Slateport. And think about the planning, Kelly."

"I do," answers the cheerful and at times hyper one. "And we're obviously not gonna get married tonight. I just feel that if…you know that there is a special person in your life who loves you and you love back just as much, the next logical step would be…true commitment. I just want to know that…when the time is right—for both of us, would you marry me, May?"

"Are you…proposing to me?"

"Not quite," Kelly clarifies. "It's more of a commitment to commit to one another when we're ready. A real proposal would be too much of a distraction right now, and besides, I don't have a ring."

May snorts in laughter at the thought of Kelly proposing to her without a ring, thinking that it would be a real Kelly thing to do before saying jokingly, "You cheapo lesbo! Come here, you!" she commands, bringing her girlfriend close to her in a gentle yet firm embrace. Unnecessarily whispering in the girl's ear, May informs her, "You really had me there for a second, Kelly. But, let me tell you this as a promise from me to you. At the most, I'll be ready to get married in a few years. I know that's not an exact number, but that's only because over that time, I want to make absolutely sure that you are the one. Okay?"

Kelly flashes the glossing young girl the 'okay' symbol and the two seal the pact with a kiss on each other's lips. The pair holds onto the kiss for more than just a passing moment, until one of the partners sees a sign. Kelly looks over to the side table drawer of their room and notices that the clock reads that there are only five minutes until eleven o'clock.

Pulling away from the kiss, much to the chagrin of her girlfriend, Kelly explains, "May, as your trainer, friend and girlfriend, I think it's about time for you to go to bed."

"What?" May protests not believing what is coming out of her sweetheart's mouth. "Like we said, I'm seventeen years old, Kelly! Bedtime is whenever!"

"Marissa Kendall Maple!" Kelly responds sternly. May turns back to her in attention upon hearing her full name which she hasn't heard since about age eight. "Right now, you are in training, and I am responsible for making sure you don't go astray in your training. Because of that, I expect you to be 100 percent, and you can't be 100 percent without a good night's rest, so listen to me. Go…to…bed."

"But I'm not even tired, Kelly!" May complains.

Knowing the games that the coordinator plays, Kelly decides to fire back by essentially bribing her belle. "I'll tuck you in and give you a good night kiss!"

Convinced to no end to following along with her girlfriend's wishes, May almost immediately fake yawns, exclaiming, "Oh, damn! What time is it?" Looking at the clock, May says forcefully, "Wow! It's late! I better get to bed," and from this point, May points her right index finger at Kelly, informing her, "and you'd better get to tucking me into bed like you promised."

As promised, Kelly takes the next few minutes to get into her bed clothes and fix up the bed for May, tucking the world-class coordinator into bed and rolling up the covers to the brunette's neck. The room is essentially dark with the lone exception being the dimmed florescent lights on the top of the wall and the mini lamp situated on top of the side table drawer.

Going down to her knees like a mother tending to her own child, Kelly gives May her final words for the evening. "Good night, my princess."

"Why," May begins drowsily as the signs of sleep become clearer, "Why am I not sleeping with you, Kelly, like we always do?"

"May, I'm sorry, but…it's a distraction," Kelly admits. "Even though we have always been on our best behavior while sharing a bed together, I think it might cause some unwanted disarray, and you know my stance on that. Just think good thoughts for now, and I'll see your lovely face first thing in the morning. Good night," she says and then she leans in to give the girl her promised kiss.

The resting coordinator willfully accepts it, wishing Kelly a good night as she stays still in her spot on the bed. After the long kiss good night, Kelly quickly switches the light switch from on to off for the room, and finally she clicks off the light coming from the lamp, leaving the room in total darkness as she quickly hits the sack for the night herself.

* * *

A/N: So what's gonna happen in chapter seven? Find out next chapter, which is seven!

Until next time, it's been Rave!


	7. You've Been Wrong Before

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Kelly and May spend Friday evening talking about everything that is on their mind. From May wanting to get the eventual meeting with Drew and Dawn over with to all of her family and friends being here for this special event and the distractions they cause without even knowing it, no topic is too off base for the couple. Kelly drops the bombshell that she would eventually like to marry May. She has said that while she would like to do it, her age (17) is a factor in her decision. The girlfriends agree to commit to getting married in the future. Kelly sees that it's late and asks that May go to bed, which she eventually agrees to do after some coaxing from her belle.

NOTE: This chapter contains a small fight. This is the final chapter of the 'Friday' arc. Story will return on April 1st (no joke) with the 'Saturday' arc.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 7- You've Been Wrong Before)

* * *

About a quarter of an hour has passed on the clock. May tucked in tightly by her girlfriend not that long ago is currently falling victim to one of her biggest pet peeves. While she used every trick in the book to make her girlfriend believe that she was getting progressively tired as the night wore on, it was in fact Kelly who seemingly went out like a light. No one needs to see the Lilycove native to know that she is tired; rather it'd be best that they just hear the loud sounds of snoring coming out of the nose of the princess of pokeblock.

The reverberations going in and coming out like ocean waves are very cringe worthy, and are keeping May up when even she will admit that she has to get in a good amount of sleep for tomorrow. 'Isn't it ironic that _she's_ the one who had to force me into this damn bed? Now when _I_ need sleep, I can't get it,' she thinks as she struggles with the tightly tucked sheets and covers just to sit up against the two or three pillows leaning against the head of the bed.

Realizing that it will take some innovation and creativity on her part to get out and get away from the foghorn that is her sweetheart during bedtime, May uses a technique that she remembers seeing in her local science center when she only seven years old. In order to be freed from their cocoons, caterpillars often have to struggle to get out of a tiny hole and fly away as newly morphed butterflies.

The motions they used resembled a type of shimmy or shake, so the vexed coordinator imitated those exact motions and after about 30 seconds of inhaling and sucking in her chest to make room, she was finally freed from her constriction. The first thing that the gym leader's daughter did once out of her own personal cocoon was stretch her limbs for a few seconds to get the feeling back in her body once more. She sneaks a look over to the snoring senorita stretched out in the other bed with her arms and legs in what appear to be random places on top of the bed and its covers.

"Cute, if not pathetic," May smiles softly before she walks to the other end of the room, making sure not to make any sounds that would surely awaken the tired mess that is her girlfriend. Knowing that she can't ruin this chance to escape, the woken girl carefully turns the knob of the door to the right and using hands with the gentile quality of a surgeon opens the door with the goal to allow as little light from the hallways as possible to hit the bedrooms and seep into the closed lids of Kelly's eyes, thereby waking her up and fouling up the Maple girl's breakout.

Seeing that she has found her happy medium by creating enough space for her to break out of her hotel room without much straining and not let enough light in to wake Kelly, May silently applauds herself as she walks out of the room in her pajamas and her bare feet, which she would soon learn was a careless mistake.

As she made the very first step out into the hotel's eighth floor hallway, May steps on something with her right foot which causes her to squeal in a great deal of pain. She acted quickly by covering her mouth for fear that Kelly would hear her from inside the room. The shock that came with this sudden pang caused the girl to fall forward into the hallway, tumbling down to the mustard yellow carpet below and finally landing square on the small of her back.

While she did not hurt her back in this combination of chronological events, May is clenching her right ankle for fear that she might have twisted it. As she doesn't feel any sort of discomfort from this part of her body, she lets go of her ankle only to bring her foot down, and feel that familiar pain once more. Looking down at the sole of her foot, she sees what appears to be a gold-plated thumbtack lodged right in the middle of her heel.

The mere sight of this foreign object deeply inserted in her body makes the adventurous girl cringe somewhat as she works carefully to get it out with as little pain as her nerves will physically allow. Sitting down on the soft carpet with the door to her room still open, May uses her left index finger and thumb to tightly grasp both sides of the tack's head. Part one is complete, but now comes the matter of removing this metal abomination from her foot.

She grits her teeth in anticipation of a quick and sudden removal to ease as much pain as she can. Counting in her head the numbers 'One, two, three,' she snatches the red-tipped tack out of her skin and takes a few quick, short breaths to take her mind off the fact that she just removed a metal tack out of her foot. After a few seconds, a couple of drops of blood seep out of her heel, which May all but expected to happen.

Knowledgeable of the hotel's layout after many years of attending Slateport's Grand Festival, the slightly injured coordinator decides to forego risking waking up Kelly and she carefully shuts the door to their room. She then walks, or rather hops on one leg, to the nearby public restroom for guests and other attendants, and hears feet rustling inside one of the stalls. Paying no mind whatsoever to this, May searches for and finds the first aid kits that are placed in every bathroom in the hotel.

Finding what she needs to clean the cut in a container of iodide, some cotton balls and a band-aid, May gets right to work on her right heel. With about four or five stinging strokes of iodide using the brush, she then applies pressure to the ball point wound using one pressed cotton ball, and she holds the entire assertion point together using two band-aids stuck to each other to form one large covering.

The ultimate test comes when May places her right foot down onto the ground. Initially, she feels no pain, but she has to go further, so she takes a step on her right foot. Again, she feels nothing but her foot coming down to the ground, but somewhat stubborn, she has to be absolutely sure that her foot won't bother her anymore due to the tack, so May walks around the tile floor a few times. For the third time in this sequence, she feels no pain whatsoever, and is convinced that this minor issue has been squared away for good.

"Eureka!" May exclaims, happy to have gotten that problem solved without it becoming an issue. As she makes her way to the door of the ladies room en route to the vending machines on her floor to score a midnight snack, she reaches for the handle of the restroom door as the pitter patter of rushing feet become progressively louder with each step.

Before the Hoenn region coordinator can open the door to the room, her entire body is turned around by the arm 180 degrees to the point where she comes face to face with a very irate looking Dawn Berlitz.

"Goddamn you, May Maple," she speaks before winding back her right arm and slapping the Petalburg native hard across her face.

"Oh!" explains the attacked, as she is turned around to face the bathroom mirror. May gets a good look at herself and finds that an imprint has been left on her face by Dawn. "What the hell was that for?" she yells directly to the younger coordinator.

"You're ruining everything, you bitch!" Dawn forces out of her mouth while tears come out of her eyes. "My boyfriend can't stop talking or thinking about you. I know he still has feelings for you. God, why can't you ever just go away and leave me the hell alone? Although it's crystal clear you and Kelly are dykes, you've put Drew under your spell so deeply that he can't even see reality right in front of his face. _I'm_ his future, not you, and you need to let him know that."

May, knowing that people who saw her with Kelly all of the time would make that weightless assumption, is not fazed at all by this name calling and responds, "You need to be more creative than that in your insults,_ Dawn Rickles_, and furthermore, where in the world do you get the idea that just because I'm with Kelly all the time that we're lesbians?"

"I saw you with Kelly, Kenny and Zoey today and heard your conversation," Dawn answers with spite laced in her voice. To this, May's face starts to waiver. Dawn is correct in her reasoning, but that would've mean that she and Drew were both spying on her during a private moment. "That's where I get the _fact_ that you and Kelly are nothing more than a bunch of rug munchers."

Her face is no longer one of concern; rather one filled with anger brimming to the surface at the audacity of her personal rival becomes bitterer by the second in her words towards the great relationship that she shares with Kelly. "You know? I don't get you, honestly. You have a…really screwed up way of looking at relationships. You think that just because you are in love with someone that you have to have sex with that person. That's B.S., because I love Kelly. Yeah, you're right. We are together, but we don't need sex to validate our love. Besides, when we do make love for the first time…"

"Both of you will be old with gray hairs," Dawn rudely interrupts, "While Drew and I will live our lives to the absolute fullest. It's probably the same reason why he left you. In order to get in a relationship, you have to _give _and take, May, but most of all, you have to give. You need to give it up, or no one will want you, lesbo prude."

May cannot take it any more. Her emotions are practically begging to be let out into the open for this sorry soul to see. So she decides to let Dawn have it…by laughing her tail off in the restroom. For about fifteen seconds, May absolutely laughs it up and this confuses the blue haired one to no end.

"Oh, gosh!" May exclaims. "You're really full of jokes tonight, aren't you, Dawn?" and then, without any prior warning, May charges in the direction of her adversary and slams the petite frame of the second generation coordinator against the tile wall of the bathroom, not caring if she got hurt or not.

Holding the girl securely to the wall by her arms and bringing her mouth to the near ear of the restrained young lady, May whispers disturbingly, "Now you listen to me you ignorant, immature, arrogant, snobby, slutty, sorry little _bitch_. Kelly and I want love, and we have it with each other, _without_ sex, so that would make you wrong, and, well…that wouldn't be the first time you've been wrong, 'eh Dawn?"

This causes something inside of Dawn to snap, crackle and pop all at the same time. She releases her right arm from May's grip and gives her a punch right to the pajama-wearing coordinator's chin, forcing the older girl all the way back to the area of the sinks and temporarily disorienting her at the same time. "You and Kelly can go straight to hell for all I care," Dawn states before she flails several wild punches, haymakers and slaps to May while she is still not completely aware of her surroundings.

After about five more seconds of this, the beaten coordinator finally realizes the danger she is in, and on a lucky shot, throws a blind left handed punch that lands flush on Dawn's right cheek, snapping her neck and the rest of her head back and lifting the stylish trainer up from off the ground. The hit is enough to knock Dawn out and adding insult on top of injury, her head takes the greatest impact on the tile floor, putting her completely out of commission for now.

May needs to take a deep breath and examine her entire situation, so she looks at herself in the mirror to check for any further damage to her facial features. Then, because she's not completely heartless as it pertains to Dawn, she checks for her pulse and immediately finds it much to her relief.

"Holy shit! What the fuck happened here?" asks a new voice that has entered the bathroom. May turns to the direction of the door and is not surprised to find that her friend Zoey is now in the ladies room.

"I had to…she was riding me hard, Zoey. I had to protect myself. She has a strong pulse if you're wondering," a winded May erratically attempts to explain to her friend. "Damn it, she knows! She knows about me and Kelly!"

"Well," Zoey begins, "you can look at this either one of two ways. You can sulk over the fact that one of your worst enemies knows for a fact that you're a lesbian or you can be happy over the fact that you don't have to hide anything from them anymore. This can be the first in a bunch of large steps to truly being openly gay."

Looking over to her former crush, the concerned coordinator notices that Dawn is starting to come to. "Hey, May. I don't want any blowups while I'm here doing my business. Dawn's about to come out of it, so I think you should just head out of here for now. I'll speak to you and Kelly in the morning. Okay?"

May agrees without any argument and as she leaves the restroom, she says good night to Zoey. Once out of the ladies room, she sees Zoey's other half in the hotel hallway.

"Kenny? What are you doing out here?"

"My gal pal wants us to go to our hotel room together, seeing as we did just about everything else together, and I agreed," he explains. "Every restaurant in town had at least a two hour wait, and because we were both hungry, we were desperate to just eat somewhere. So we waited standing outside of our favorite spots for food. To pass the time with other people that waited, we sang songs, played games and…even danced. People walking through thought we were crazy, and I know we are…crazy in love, that is. Then we spent the rest of our time waiting while in one another's arms. I don't think I've ever had more fun waiting for anything in my entire life and the time just blew by. I couldn't have had that kind of fun with my folks, or Dawn, or…"

"Nothing like love, huh?" May asks, already knowing the answer.

"Nothing at all," Kenny agrees. "We then ordered, and even though it was after ten o'clock, we had a blast, eating our quesadillas, and then Zoey had sirloin steak, and I had my Tuscan chicken salad, and we just talked all night, even though we really said absolutely nothing."

"I've done that before," May glosses. "I'd be on the phone with Kelly for at least two hours a few times and we'd—I tell you; I would really piss off the people at the pokemon center staying on their phones for so long. Luckily, it didn't cost me anything, but…I know the feeling of speaking to someone for hours, but not really saying a thing."

"Okay," Zoey says, coming out of the bathroom and entering May and Kenny's conversation. Turning to May, she explains, "I was somehow able to convince Dawn that she fell asleep in the bathroom after getting a snack from the vending machines. Though she doesn't remember the fight or the knock out, she's gonna be coming out of that door any second now when she finishes her business, so we should head back to our rooms so we don't jog her memory."

"No problem," says the pajama wearer, who over time has gotten even more tired, especially having to ward off an aggressive attack from the native of Twinleaf. "I really do have to get some sleep, so I'll see you two tomorrow. Pleasant dreams."

Zoey and Kenny walk arm in arm in the opposite direction of their friend who is dressed for bed and wish her a good night as they walk to their room to begin the end of quite an eventful day for all three.

* * *

A/N: The 'Dawn Rickles' insult from May is a reference to American comedian Don Rickles, considered by many to be the king of insult comedy.

I've had a tack stuck in my foot before from walking around the house barefooted. It hurt like hell, and it taught me to never walk barefooted anywhere again.

This ends the 'Friday' arc, and if you didn't read the notes at the top, this story will take about a two-week hiatus and return on April 1st, and that's not a joke. It will return with the 'Saturday' arc as we get deeper into this unique web of people, places, romances, coordinating, love, lust and the like.

Until next time, you know it can only be Rave!


	8. BONUS CHAPTER: What Hurts So Much?

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Okay, I know I said that there would be no new updates to this story until April 1st, but it turns out that a spur of inspiration came to me in the form of a bonus chapter. I doubt you all will complain about it. Technically, this could be either the end of the 'Friday' arc, the beginning of the 'Saturday' arc, or both at the same time. I promise that after this, I will return on April 1st.

To recap, May sought to get out of her hotel room and from her snoring girlfriend. Her trek included carefully moving out of her room, but carelessly walking barefooted. She steps on a tack and after removing it, hops to the public bathroom to clean up her bloody heel. After cleaning it up, she sees Dawn, who confronts her about Drew. The two eventually end up in a physical fight, which ends when May gets a lucky knock out shot on Dawn. Zoey ends up coming into the restroom, back from her dinner with Kenny. She insists that May leaves when she sees that Dawn is about to come to. May and Kenny talk in the hallway and afterwards, the three decide to call it a night.

NOTE: This chapter begins as Dawn makes her way back to her hotel room. As far as her memory is concerned, Dawn is only woozy with memory loss due to a concussion suffered from the fight.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 8- What Hurts So Much?)

* * *

Five knocks on the door cause Drew Emerson to awaken from his sorrow. Finding that he was sleeping alongside of the bed the entire time, he turns his attention to the clock in between the two beds to find that it is just after midnight, making it early Saturday morning. Not wanting to keep whoever is at the door waiting, Drew makes his way to the door. Looking through the peephole, he sees exactly who he thought it would be.

Opening the door immediately, Drew comes face to face with his temporarily estranged girlfriend Dawn Berlitz with two red eyes and a nearly indistinct bruise on one of her cheeks to match. It's difficult to see the bruise due to the lack of light in their room at that moment.

"Hey," speaks the boy laconically, to which the girl responds in kind. Stepping off to the side, Drew lets the blue-haired girl inside.

"Look, Dawn," Drew begins, "I…I'm real sorry."

"Talk is cheap," she retorts, holding her guard for now.

"Do you want my honesty, then?"

Not expecting to hear that come out of Drew's mouth, Dawn is caught off guard at the moment. She has no idea if it's the comment that her boyfriend made, or the minor aching of the head that she is currently suffering that mysteriously began when she was in the bathroom mere minutes ago.

"What the hell are you talking about, Drew?" Dawn asks, once again keeping her stance at this difficult time. "Honesty? Forgive me if I don't think I'm seeing or hearing much honesty from you right now."

"And I'd like to change that, if you just give me a chance to explain myself," says the near desperate young man. Looking the second generation coordinator directly into her clouded blue eyes, he says, "I'm not a perfect person, Dawn. I did lie to you, because even right now, I still have feelings for May."

Bringing her head down, the once cheerful soul can not find anything to smile about upon hearing this revelation. "Freaking hopeless," she says in a whisper in response to something she more or less knew to be fact.

Hearing her dislike for this honesty on his part, Drew continues, "Please. Let me finish. You have to hear everything. After you left earlier tonight, I saw…I saw Kelly and May on the newscast. They were together, and they were giving each other 'the look'," and Drew does the quote signals with his hands when he says 'the look'. "It's the look that people who really are in love with each other will give each other. At that moment, I was convinced. Kelly and May are in love."

Stopping to catch his breath, Drew balls his right fist directly in front of his mouth before he fleshes himself out to Dawn once more. "It would be…" It's becoming too upsetting for Drew to keep going as he is now crying with one knee down onto the carpet before his current love interest.

Finding the strength within to be completely honest with the girl right in front of him, Drew continues his story while his weight is shifted onto his kneeled down knee. "It's useless for me to try and pursue May now. She's convinced that she can find love in some other girl, and I can't think of anything that would stop the two from being with one another."

"Look, I'm not telling you this to hurt your feelings," Drew elaborates while getting up from his kneeling position, "like I said, I'm human. I'm not a perfect person, and because of that, I won't have perfect thoughts. Even though I know for sure that Kelly and May are an item, I still have these thoughts for her. I can't help it, though. It isn't like I can turn off these feelings like a light switch. It's gonna take some time, but at least I know that May and I are dead in the water for good. It'sa start."

"You said earlier that you didn't see much honesty from me, Dawn. Well, this is as honest as you or anyone else will ever get from me. Don't…hate me just because I'm human. There's a class act underneath this skin and bones. He's just love struck and afraid of being lonely. That's it."

That last sentence from Drew is not something that Dawn expected to hear in the least bit. 'He's…afraid?' she thinks. In all the time she has known this cunning type-A personality, he didn't really show much in the way of fear of anything, but here he his telling her that he doesn't want to be alone and that it scares him.

At times, Dawn could relate to the feeling. In the latter part of her young life, she would often cling to people who would take charge in situations because she didn't think she was capable enough to do it on her own. She traveled through numerous regions with Zoey after leaving Ash and Brock behind as she realized that she had a lot more work to do to become a master in her craft and needed to surround herself with several craftsmen and women to make it all work for her.

In Drew, she found the ultimate in craftsmen. With even more experience than her traveling companion, Dawn found him as he, May, Kenny and Zoey were all in the Kanto region competing for that Grand Festival crown. Back then like he is right now, Drew was quite the charmer and pursued Dawn despite her inert stubbornness to the affection. He did all of this while May was none the wiser and while Dawn believed that Drew and May were only traveling together as friends.

While the naturally playful girl did what came to her and played around with Drew rejecting the white roses that he would give her from contest to contest and not accepting the many stuffed animals and other trinkets that he would order for her, in the back of her head, Dawn wondered if all of this showing of affection was too good to be true.

As she thinks about how she came to be with Drew even more, her head hurts even more as if something is throbbing deep inside of her brain. She can't understand where this headache is coming from, because right after she left her hotel room, all she did was go to the bathroom and cry out her frustrations. The rest is a blur as someone whispered in her ear to go back to hotel room number 818 if she is finished in the bathroom.

"You know, I don't want to be lonely either," Dawn says with her right hand pressed to her forehead. While in each other's arms, Dawn continues, "I want this to work so much, but everything around us just causes these feelings you talk about to come out. Despite all of that and a lot of other crap, if we work together one day at a time, I know that we can get through this."

"I thank you for being honest, Drew, but if I could help you and us in any way, here is a word of advice; just please stay the hell away from May Maple. I am serious when I say this, Drew. If she goes one way, you go the other. If being around her is what's making these feelings come out of you, then get her out of the picture. Avoid her like the plague, and since she's gonna be around May all of the time, it's a given that I want you to stay away from Kelly too."

"Out of sight, out of mind?"

"Exactly, and if you are not seeing her, you are not thinking about her, and we won't have any more blowups like we did earlier. Right?"

"Right. So…" Drew begins, "are we okay?"

"Just keep your nose clean, and we'll be fine," but as the two come together in a hug of reconciliation, Dawn feels her headache flare up like a giant nerve popping in her head, and she unconsciously reacts to the pain.

Letting go of her embrace with Drew, Dawn clenches her head once more as the pains increase in frequency. "Are _you_ okay?" asks her boyfriend.

"It's this headache. I can't explain it, but since I was out after our fight, I went to the bathroom to vent my frustrations, and until I came back here…the rest is just a big blur."

"Would this blur have anything to do with the bruise on your face?"

Not surprised that Drew would eventually bring up the matter of her bruise, Dawn admits, "You know, that's the one thing that I noticed while I was in the bathroom. I looked at it for a while, and I _still_ have no clue how it got there." Attempting to speculate the possibilities out loud, Dawn says, "Maybe I got it from bumping into something in the bathroom or, I fell, or—AHH! Goddamn it!" Dawn's headache has clearly gotten worse as she now holds her head in place with both hands pressing the palms against her temples.

"Do you need to go to the hospital?"

Dawn seriously considers a visit after hearing the concern laced in Drew's question, but the brief pang passes after about three or four seconds, which does nothing more than to assure Dawn that the worst of the mystery headache has passed.

"No, thank you, Drew."

"Are you sure?" he asks, "because it's no problem at all. Don't try to be brave, Dawn. If you're hurt and you don't know why, you shouldn't risk it. Hell, if you say you don't remember how you got the bruise or the source of you headaches, it could pretty much be anything!"

As Drew wraps up his mini lecture, he gets another good look at the bruise on his girlfriend's face in the dim light coming from out of the hotel. It appears to be shaped differently than most bruises he's seen before. 'It looks almost like…a fist!' Drew concludes, as he notices the knuckle marks on the edge of discoloration.

'Okay. She can't remember _how_ she got the bruise. The bruise itself looks like someone's fist imprinted on her face.' Putting two and two together, Drew makes the very wise decision to pick up the phone in the hotel room and hit three digits on the touch-tones with his right index finger.

"What are you doing, Drew?" Dawn asks.

Drew ignores his girlfriend as he listens to one dial tone before an emergency dispatcher prompts him with the words, "911 Emergency?"

As calmly as his nerves will allow, Drew says, "Yes, I need an ambulance sent to the Milton Hotel in Slateport City. I have very good reason to believe my girlfriend is suffering the effects of a concussion caused by getting into a fight earlier this evening."

* * *

A/N: And that is the bonus chapter! Hope you enjoy and stay tuned for the ninth chapter and the true beginning of the 'Saturday' arc on April 1st!

Until next time, it's been Rave!


	9. Open Invitation to a Disaster Area

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

This chapter starts the 'Saturday' arc of the story. While Drew and Dawn reconciled after their fight in chapter five, Drew called for an ambulance early Saturday morning to get Dawn, who he has reason to believe is suffering the affects of a concussion after getting into a fight. He bases this on the fact that the imprint on Dawn's face looks like a fist.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 9- Open Invitation to a Disaster Area)

* * *

"Hey. Hey, wake up sleepyhead," a voice softly speaks while lightly slapping the cheek of the sleeping coordinator. While it looks like May is about to stir and finally awake to see the bright shining sun through the partially open blinds of their eighth floor hotel room, this hope is quickly dashed as May falls back into her state of unconsciousness.

Thinking outside of the box to get her girlfriend up and about at 7:30 a.m. on a Saturday, Kelly decides that since one cheek didn't work to get May up, maybe another cheek will, so she gives May a hard slap on her behind.

May's eyes open wide like dessert saucers. The spank on her firm bottom felt like she was being fired from out of a cannon. She exclaims an 'OH!' before turning over on her side and finding Kelly in a pair of black overalls with a white shirt under the outfit standing in front of her in her bed. Softening her face, she greets her girlfriend, saying, "Good morning, Kelly."

"Good morning to you, little runaway," says Kelly in a neutral tone.

Deciphering what Kelly meant by that greeting, May determines, "You know that I snuck out last night?" Kelly nods and the coordinator in bed asks, "But how?"

"Well, for one, you are out of the sheets that I tightly tucked you into last night," she says, stating the obvious. "Look, I'm not mad, May. You said you weren't tired last night, and there are some things which I just can't force, no matter what I try. But as of right now, it's time for you to get back into training, no excuses and no exceptions."

Cracking her neck and getting some of the kinks out of her system, May chooses not to argue with her girlfriend. For many reasons that she would find out as she snuck out several hours ago, May should not have left her hotel room, but as they say, hindsight is 20/20. "Okay. Since I'm back in training, what the first thing that you want me to do?"

"Get in the shower," Kelly orders, "get dressed, and when you're done, come downstairs and meet me for breakfast. There, we'll talk more about your training and strategy for your appeal at 5:30p.m. I got a call a few minutes ago from my parents who just arrived into the city, and I need to see them for a few minutes about…some important business, so I have to leave like right now. Okay?"

Only a tad disappointed that she won't be leaving with Kelly to have breakfast, May shrugs off this letdown and says, "No problem. I'll meet up with you later," and the two of them lean in for a quick kiss before Kelly says good bye to May and leaves their hotel room, leaving her sweetheart alone to sit on the bed. A minute or so passes before May decides to get out of the bed and get ready for her upcoming appeal.

* * *

Choosing not to waste her time on an elevator that might take several minutes to get from her floor to the first floor, Kelly rushes down the stairs of the Milton Hotel and out into the crowded and bustling lobby. Scanning the premises for about fifteen seconds, she finally finds the people whom she talked to not that long ago.

"Mom! Dad!" Kelly exclaims as she runs to the two people in question. Her father, Erik Marin, and her mother, Julia Elaine Cruz-Marin, engulf their daughter in an enormous embrace. "I'm so glad you two could make it!" Kelly comments before she lets go of the family hug.

"We're glad that everything's going well with May so far, Kelly," Julia chimes in.

"But we also know why you wanted us to meet away from her," Erik adds. "So are you sure that she won't see this before it's time?"

"Yeah," answers Kelly. "I hurried out of our room as quickly as I could. She's probably in the shower as we speak. And just so there wouldn't be any huge surprises, I alluded this to her before we went to bed and she said that she'd be ready. So can I see it? Huh? Huh?"

"All right, Kelly! Hold your horses!" Erik assures with laughter upon his face at Kelly's hyper state of anticipation. Reaching into his pocket, he pulls out a small black box and says to his only daughter, "I've got it right here," and he hands the box to Kelly.

"Go ahead, dear," Julia says. "Open it." Listening to her mother, Kelly slowly opens the black velvet box to find a blindingly bright rock on top of a yellow gold band with crescent moons etched on the inside of the ring itself. Even with the sun shining through the glass windows on top and around the hotel, the glistening from this ring seems to steal the entire spotlight as Kelly moves the box around a little bit without removing the jewelry inside.

"My God, this is beautiful!" Kelly says before hugging her parents once more. "Thank you both for getting this for me, and though I've said this many times before, thanks for being so understanding through all of this and for supporting May and I in our relationship."

"You're welcome," Kelly's parents say. Her mother, Julia, adds "but I'm sure that the ring will look much better on May's finger. So have you thought of a time to pop the question?"

"Yeah," Kelly says. "It's not that far off, but I can't do it right now, because it's a distraction, and May needs as little on her plate as she can stomach right now. This would be just too much at once. We can talk more about this over breakfast. Come on," she concludes as she leads her mom and dad to a near crowded dining hall filled with coordinators and their supporters eating their meals prior to the first round.

* * *

Removing her nightclothes in less than a minute, May darts to the shower door in the nude. The only things in her hands are a towel and a shower cap. Turning on the water on the showerhead, she only has to wait about ten seconds for the water to warm up and for her to go inside the tub and have numerous jets of steaming hot water splash against her tanned skin.

May's shower only lasts about four to six minutes before she is out of the shower, drying both her body and her hair to get ready for breakfast with Kelly. Usually, she does not go about her morning routine this quickly as she often takes just over half an hour to get ready, but the plan of her longtime partner has caused her to not want to dilly-dally in the least bit. May finishes drying her body, dresses in her matching black sweatshirt and sweatpants, ties her hair into an unkempt ponytail, puts her backpack over one of her shoulders and makes her way out of the hotel room, locking the door behind her with her keycard.

Her prime destination at the moment is the elevators that lead downstairs to floor number one and the main dining hall. It is there, after Kelly takes care of whatever business she has with her folks that they will all have their meal together and talk about whatever plans May has for her appeal, scheduled for late in the afternoon.

As she makes her way to the four elevators on the eighth floor, she spots someone looking out at the window and the cityscape during the morning sunrise. This young man has medium length dark black hair, black framed glasses around his face and is wearing quite a lot of the color green. May thinks that she knows who this guy is.

"Max?" she calls out for who she believes is her younger brother. "Hey Max! How are you doing? Where's Harley?" Turning around, the young man in question unknowingly squashes all the hopes that she had built up upon coming to the elevator and seeing him for herself.

"Oh, Conway," she says showing some disappointment.

"It's nice to see you too, May," says this man named Conway with the most sarcastic of tones.

"Forgive me," May recovers, "but I thought you were my brother. My God, why do you have to be such a dead ringer for Max?"

"Not my fault," Conway replies with the indication of sleep still in his voice. "Maybe it's intelligent design…never really gave it much thought."

In an attempt to make up for an honest mistake, May asks her other friend from Veilstone City, "So where's Holly, and why are you here?"

"Holly and I were invited by a couple of friends of ours for the weekend," Conway explains. "She got up early and wrote me a note saying that she went ahead and got breakfast leaving me to rest. I had no problem with it. I never eat breakfast as it is, and we got here _really_ early this morning to watch the appeals and see the sights this afternoon with our buds."

"Sounds good," May replies as she forgets the elevator for now. "Say, who are your friends? Maybe I know them."

"May! May!" a voice screams out running to May in the hallway leading to the hotel elevators. It is Kenny dressed in only a white t-shirt and some faded blue jeans. Once Kenny finally makes it to May, he stops to catch his breath for a moment, and he says, "Hey Conway. Look May, I've got some bad news. Dawn is in the hospital! Drew made a call, and an ambulance was sent to the hotel late last night."

"What?" both May and Conway exclaim in unison.

"You know that Zoey told me about what happened between you and Dawn last night," Kenny informs the coordinator. "And the news says that she complained of headaches and some confusion. You had the fight with her, May, and Drew is _very _upset. You've got to see him and try to make some sort of amends before he puts the pieces together himself about who's responsible and comes after you first."

"Hold on. Wait a minute, Kenny. Just hold it together for a second," Conway chimes in, wanting the picture to be cleared up in his own head. "May, you got into a fight with Dawn last night?"

"Yeah, I did," May says, not giving the confession a second thought. "She provoked me, though. It was all a matter of self—whoa! Just hang on a damn minute! You two know each other?"

"Yes, May. Small world," Kenny speaks hesitation free. "Look, that's not even important right now. What's important is that we settle this before it becomes a really big issue and shit blows up in your face. We need to go to the hospital and you have to let Drew know exactly what happened before Dawn remembers and uses it against you. Conway, if you want, you can come with us."

As Kenny takes May by the hand to make the brief trip to the Slateport Medical Center, May pulls back and says, "Just slow your role for a second, Kenny. Like I said, it was nothing more than self-defense. And besides, I have a breakfast date with Kelly and her folks right now. I think that's a better use of my time then to have to explain myself and my actions to those two jackasses."

"May, stop being so callous!" Conway demands, not knowing the whole story. "If you caused her injuries, wouldn't you be even a bit concerned?"

"No offense, but you don't know the meaning of 'callous', Conway," May defends. "If you knew even half of the shit they've done to me over the years, you'd wonder why I'm not harder on the two of them than I am. Heck, you'd probably be patting me on the back right now for keeping my cool for as long as I have."

Conway did not expect to hear anything like this at all. For the many years that he has known Dawn, he's never seen her as a two-timer, but that is exactly the picture that May is painting for him. "Kenny, do you know about any of this?"

"Every bit of it," Kenny says. "I was there when Drew left May for Dawn in the cruelest of ways. May walked into their room during the Kanto Grand Festival a few years back to find the two of them…playing a game of 'multiply'." Kenny's wordage causes Conway to do a double take.

"She was devastated and Zoey and I were thrown for a loop as well, 'cause we _never_ expected to hear about Dawn doing something like that." Now with his words directed towards May, Kenny continues, "Despite that, I think it would be best that you see Drew and Dawn, May, and just get it over with!"

May honestly doesn't want anything to do with either Dawn or Drew ever again if she could help it. But then she remembers something that Kelly told her last night.

"_And when we do see them, just…make an effort to extend the olive branch. I know you probably don't want to hear that, but it's an option. If they aren't cordial, then…don't try and fight them, either."_

Those words ring clearly in the mind of the conflicted coordinator as she now paces back and forth in the elevator entrance. If she does go to the hospital, all she'll have to do is admit that she caused the injuries, but only because she had to protect herself. If she ignores Drew and he rightfully assumes that May did it, then there is no telling what he'll do in response.

May is convinced and she acquiesces to Kenny's wishes, saying. "All right then. Let's get this over with. Conway, you can come with us, too."

* * *

A/N: The plot…thickens. So just when's the right time for Kelly to propose to May if not now? And what will happen when Kenny, Conway and May try to clear the air with Drew and Dawn? And won't this make May late for her breakfast date? See who else shows up for breakfast!

Until then, it's been Rave!


	10. The Breakfast Clubs

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Kelly wakes up May, who dresses and takes a shower. Kelly has some business to tend to with her parents downstairs before breakfast. This business is consists of her parents, Erik and Julia, giving Kelly the engagement ring she requested some time ago. She admits that she is waiting for the right moment to pop the question. Before May can make it downstairs for breakfast with Kelly, she runs across Conway, who is visiting the Grand Festival with his girlfriend Holly. Kenny comes across the two and informs May that perhaps due to her fight with Dawn, that the younger coordinator is in the hospital. Eventually, May finally agrees to see Drew and Dawn just to get the meeting over with. Conway comes along with Kenny and May.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 10- The Breakfast Clubs)

* * *

With an enormous spread of numerous morning foods, including stands with everyday helpings of toast along with as many as thirty different varieties of jam, pancakes, waffles, steak, pork, rice balls, soybeans, several flavors of danish, fresh fruits from all over the world, bagels, cream cheese and donuts fried on site along with juices, coffees and teas for everyone to enjoy this Saturday morning, nobody can help but water at the mouth at the prospect of such a myriad of free nourishment all in one place, which the visitors of Slateport would be fools to turn down.

Such is the case with the Marin family as parents Erik and Julia and daughter Kelly spend nearly five minutes filling their plates with a little bit of everything in the spread and have a seat at one of the few unoccupied tables. One minute passes as the three begin to make a few dents in their respective plates of food. Erik starts the conversation by asking Kelly, "So, are you sure that May is gonna be joining us for breakfast?"

"Any minute now, dad," Kelly answers. "And she talked about this either yesterday or on Thursday night; May's parents should also be here this morning, as well."

"Great. So, Kelly," Julia says, taking the floor, "breaking everything down, you plan on proposing to your girlfriend in the not too distant future, you're about to present your dissertation on pokemon nutrition in the next six months to become a PhD, and you're one of the most respected assistant professors and personal trainers at the Pokemon Academy in Rustboro. Would you say that things are going well for you?"

Kelly's mother has said quite a bit about all of the positive accomplishments that her daughter has made over the past several years. Nothing bad has really stood out in this time, so she has to agree with the general sentiment. "Even though things have been going great, I know that life can only get better for May and I." Reaching into one of the many pockets in her overalls, she pulls out the ring while it's still inside of the box. She then admits to her folks, "I've been pushing May really hard at times, and while I definitely want her to become champion, there's another reason. In my mind, I just can't think of any better scenario to ask her to marry me than when we're onstage together after she's won the Grand Festival. That's why I want her to win so badly. Not just for her, but for us and that moment."

"Professor Cruz-Marin? Oh my God! Is that you?" Kelly turns around to find out where this foreign voice came from. Whoever it is, they must know her from her tenure as a professor at the academy, and as she sees this young woman coming closer and closer to her, Kelly can't help but break out in a smile.

The woman who is walking briskly to Kelly opens her arms wide for a hug, which Kelly accepts without even a second thought. This tall woman, who is older than Kelly by more than a year, is dressed in a white, collared, buttoned-down shirt, a loose black tie, thigh-length black shorts and long black boots that come up to above her knees. Her hair is long and orange-red and Kelly is tickled by it for a bit while hugging this young woman.

Letting go after about ten seconds, Kelly says, "Hey, Holly. I certainly didn't expect to see you here this weekend." Turning over to mom and dad, she says, "Guys, this is one of my former star students, Holly Rockwell. Holly, this is my father, Erik, and my mother, Julia."

"It's so nice to meet you two," Holly greets. "I just want to say that you two have an absolutely fantastic daughter. I don't think I've ever learned so much in school until I came to her pokeblock and nutrition classes some years back. My pokemon have never been healthier than they are right now and Professor Cruz-Marin has everything to do with that."

"Thanks, Holly," Kelly says, very flattered at the remark from one of her students, "and very soon, I hope to make it _Doctor_ Cruz-Marin."

"I hope all goes well, professor."

"And please," Kelly adds, holding back her chuckle, "we're not in the classroom and you're older than me. Call me Kelly."

"Kelly. Okay…Kelly, and as far as age is concerned, it doesn't matter to me," Holly claims. "The fact that you've gone this far in your career no matter how young you are means that you've earned the title of professor, soon to be doctor. You should take a lot of pride in doing that so early in your life."

Kelly blushes for a bit before a voice screams "Holly!" in the midst of the otherwise loud commotion in the dining hall. The voice belongs to Zoey who asks the young woman in question, "Holly, what's up? I thought you were gonna get me a bagel with cream cheese and strawberry jam. What happened? It's been several minutes!"

Holly gasps for a hot second. Zoey was right. She did ask the person that invited her and her boyfriend to come see May hopefully win the Grand Festival if she wanted anything else to eat while she went to go to the bathroom and when she spotted her favorite professor, she just got sidetracked.

"You're right, Zoey. I ran into Kelly, who I know from my time in Academy, and I just lost track of what I was supposed to do. I'm sorry. Forgive me if I let you down. "

"Whoa, whoa! Slow down, Holly!" Zoey assures. "You're alright. Don't worry about it. You ran into Kelly. That's all. It's nothing to get frazzled about. I was just concerned because you can really get lost in this jungle if you're not careful. And I _am _responsible for you. We can't forget that." Turning her attention away from the learned trainer for just a moment, Zoey looks at the people that are sitting with Kelly for breakfast. Noticing the similarities, she asks, already knowing the answer, "Kelly, are these your parents?"

"Yes," Kelly answers, and she introduces her mom and dad by name to the tomboy.

"It's nice to meet you both," Zoey says. "My name is Zoey Zarkowski, and though I'm more of a friend of May's, my boyfriend Kenny and I have seen Kelly quite a few times. In fact, I think that we even took one of her online courses in making pokeblocks."

"You know," Kelly recollects, "the more I think about it, I do remember seeing both of you on one of my roster lists, and both of you aced my doctorate-level course. Great job."

"Thanks," Zoey says, while inconspicuously holding Holly's hand. "So, where's May?"

"You know, Zoey, that is very good question," a brand new male voice speaks, entering the picture. Zoey and everyone else at or near the Marin table looks to see May's parents, Norman and Caroline, walking to this makeshift breakfast club, which is rapidly increasing in size.

"Hi Erik. Hi Julia," Caroline greets Kelly's parents, who return the salutation in kind.

"Where _is_ May, Kelly?" Norman asks, rightfully curious. "Weren't we all supposed to meet together for breakfast?"

"Yeah. About that," Kelly explains. "I left the hotel room maybe…fifteen minutes ago so that she could get her shower in and meet up with me and my folks before the first round, get that out of the way, and get back into training. She should be here any minute now, honestly."

"And so should Kenny," Zoey admits while still holding onto Holly by her hand. "Well, it's nice to see all of you here, but Holly and I really should be going right now. We left our table open, and if we aren't careful, someone might hijack it. We'll meet up with you later."

The Marin family and the Maple family bid Zoey and Holly farewell as they go back to their table. Once it is clear in all of their minds that the two girls are out of ear sight, Norman gets down to business with Kelly.

"Have you been making sure that May has been keeping to the training regimen that I recommended, Kelly?"

"I've been doing by absolute best, Norman," Kelly replies, "but I must admit at times to…letting her have some leeway. I know I shouldn't, but you know your daughter. May can be about as stubborn as they come; probably only surpassed by Ash Ketchum in her level of stubbornness. But she gets no more breaks from this point forth."

* * *

"You've been a nervous wreck all day, and it's not even eight in the morning yet!" Zoey says to her invited guest as they go to sit back at their table, which fortunately remains unoccupied.

"Can you really blame me, Zoey?" Holly questions of the younger girl. "I mean, I'm nineteen, and I've always been somewhat…bi-curious I suppose, but never thought that I would actually…you know. It burdened me so much that some nights, even though Conway probably didn't know because he sleeps like a log, I'd just cry myself to sleep. I love him, but sometimes, I wonder if I might have missed out on something very special with someone else. I talked to him about this and made it a point that I would never cheat on him, and that I just had these feelings."

"To my pleasant surprise," Holly continues, "Conway was fine with it, and even said that at times, he's had these same feelings for one of his friends in Veilstone City some years after he began his journey."

"Say no more, Holly." As the confident coordinator explains, "You name it, I've seen it this past year or so. You have no idea how many people in the same position as you are have come to couples like Kenny and I in our many rendezvous. It's nothing to be ashamed of either way."

"We just feel embarrassed to admit this stuff because the people in power say that we _should_ be embarrassed. They say this because they feel in their hearts that they know best and that everyone should know as they know, but the only problem is that they really don't know. The fact is we _are_ amorous beings, Holly. To not act upon these feelings would be real cheating. You'd be cheating yourself out of new experiences and trying new things and learning."

Leaning in to caress Holly's cheek, Zoey continues, "I could tell when we first met that you're one who likes to learn and grow by experience. You want someone that will take control and lead you to where you have to go."

"Well, I _need_ someone to take control, honestly. Because…I'm really a virgin when it comes to…swinging."

"Well, you're in luck," Zoey says before she leans into what will be her first kiss with Holly.

"But Zoey, what about all of these people?"

"Like they really give a damn," she comments. "Look, all they're worried about is what they're gonna do next. All I want _you _to think about is right now. Think about what you've known to be true for a while, and just let go."

Though initially apprehensive at the actions of her more experienced dance partner, Holly does exactly what Zoey tells her to and liberates herself from her inhibitions. She subsequently loses herself in the moment even more by closing her eyes as she leans into the kiss, gaily receiving the affection from this near perfect stranger.

While Zoey may believe that no one could care less about who is kissing around them, there is a set of eyes that are looking at this scene very confused as to exactly what they are witnessing.

As Kelly pretends to listen to Norman talk about the many ways that May can go about her afternoon appeal, Kelly sees her girlfriend's best friend and one of her best pupils at Academy giving each other mouth to mouth. 'Zoey, how could you do this Kenny? And Holly…why would you even go that route? I had no idea—I don't believe…you're cheating on Kenny! After everything you went through with Dawn and everything you said to us yesterday. Why?'

"Kelly?"

"What?" she blurts out in response to her father, who noticed his daughter's very far away look on her face. Getting back down to Earth, Kelly apologizes, saying, "I was daydreaming. Thinking about May."

"I don't blame you, Kelly," Caroline assures with her signature smile. "Hey, you said that she wouldn't be long. What's keeping her?"

Kelly can only say, "I don't know. She probably ran into someone in the hallway. There _are_ a lot of coordinators and good friends that are here this weekend." As the trainer to the top coordinator turns her head slightly to the right, she notices that Zoey and Holly are just now letting go of the lip lock and sharing a light chuckle which is tantamount to a blush of embarrassment on Holly's part. She continues answering Caroline's question, "Then again, she might just be looking for us here in this gigantic room like Zoey has been trying to find her boyfriend," and Kelly puts a large amount of emphasis on the last word of her sentence.

"Honey, what are you looking at?" Kelly's mother asks.

"Nothing!" she replies a little too quickly. "Nothing at all!" Though her intuition is telling her otherwise, Julia decides not to press the issue any further, instead opting to continue eating her meal and taking sip after sip of her cup of hot green tea.

* * *

A/N: Oh, Kelly doesn't know about Zoey and Kenny's…lifestyle! That might serve to be a problem in future chapters. And even though both proud parents are in attendance in Slateport City, what about the other family members (Max)? And just how long will this meeting at the hospital between sides take? Find that one out in the next chapter!

Don't forget the fact that in the one shot 'Giving of Yourself', Kelly taught an internship during the summer months that May attended, so she has been teaching for quite a while. The fact that she's aiming to be a doctor is not out of the blue at all.

Until next time, it's been Rave!


	11. Saturday Morning Slapstick

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Kelly along with her parents have breakfast in the main dining hall of the hotel. Kelly says that she has trained May so hard because not only would she like her to win the Grand Festival, but that the moment would serve as the perfect backdrop for her to eventually propose to May. They are soon joined by one of Kelly's former Academy students and pokemon trainer, Holly Rockwell, an invited guest of both Zoey and Kenny. Norman and Caroline soon join the Marin's table and ask Kelly about the whereabouts of May. Kelly claims she shouldn't be much longer. Zoey and Holly leave to talk some more about their night with Conway and Kenny. Zoey and Holly share a kiss, which Kelly sees from afar.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 11- Saturday Morning Slapstick)

* * *

The familiar whirring sounds from the automatic sliding doors of the main entrance to the Slateport City General Hospital deceivingly welcome May, Kenny and Conway inside. With very little in the way of hesitation standing in her way, May confidently walks to the desk of the main receptionist in front of both of her male companions. It shouldn't take that long, maybe ten minutes at the most, for her to tell Drew and Dawn that she was the one ultimately responsible for sending the second generation pokemon coordinator to the emergency room.

Face to face with the bespectacled assistant typing away at her keyboard in the midst of multiple ringing phones and flashing lights at her switchboard that serve to redirect calls to where they need to go, May says to the clearly busy woman in her late thirties, "I need to see Dawn Berlitz, please," without even introducing herself by name.

Looking up at this teen girl in her black sweatpants and bandana and noticing the two teens in the background waiting for her in one of the hospital wings, the receptionist scrunches her face for a moment, confused at this very deliberate request from this complete stranger. "And your name is?" she asks May.

"May Maple," she replies simply.

The receptionist is shocked. The press had been at the hospital not that long ago upon hearing that Dawn Berlitz was hospitalized earlier that morning for headaches. The person that came with Dawn claimed that a 'May Maple' had gotten into an altercation with his girlfriend and caused her concussion, and here she is now, apparently wanting to see Dawn? She had to make sure that all of this was right. Flustered, she asks the girl, "Umm, may I see some ID before you see Dawn?"

"That won't be necessary, because she's telling the truth," says a voice walking down the wing and in the direction of May.

"Well, fancy seeing you here, Drew," May says insincerely.

Walking up to her so that he can hear her breathe, Drew lowers his voice and comes close to May's right ear, asking, "Can we talk alone?"

Whispering in his ear, May asks back to her ex, "What in the hell do we have to talk about, Drew? All I came here to do is tell Dawn that I put her here out of self defense, okay? She provoked me late last night by throwing the first punch. I had to defend myself, and I hit her, not meaning to knock her out. I just came to say that and get out of here as soon as I can, because just being around you for any great length of time makes me want to retch."

"I just want to talk, please, and then you can see Dawn." The emerald haired one notices May's fervent reluctance to his reiteration of his request. Drew then gives May an ultimatum saying, "If you don't talk to me, you don't see Dawn. Bottom line. You don't see her and I will personally tell her what happened as _I_ see it. You understand? So _now,_ what's your answer?"

"Is everything alright, May?" Conway asks as he attempts to come closer to May and Drew.

May immediately shoots him down by turning around and saying, "Conway, we're fine, okay? If you want to help me, you and Kenny can wait in the waiting room. I promise I won't be long. I just need to talk to Drew alone and then talk to Dawn and we can go back to the hotel. That should take no more than fifteen minutes. Deal?"

Conway and Kenny both give May the 'okay' symbol and take a few steps in the direction of the first floor hospital waiting room at the behest of their female friend. May watches as Conway opens the door of the waiting room for Kenny, who graciously accepts his chivalry by going in first with the older male not that far behind.

Once Drew knows that he will have his privacy with May, he non-verbally requests that she come with him away from the receptionist's desk. May follows her former boyfriend over to an empty lounge at the other end of the first floor.

As both of them remain standing inside of this lounge, Drew begins, "First off, I want to tell you that I believe your story, May. Dawn left our hotel room pretty angry at you and me. I called for an ambulance because I didn't know else to do for her and I'm not gonna just leave her when she's hurting."

"Oh, is _that_ right?" May says in amazement, thereby interrupting Drew.

"Can I finish? Please?" asks the calm male coordinator. May lets him finish and he continues, "You know, ever since you left me, I've seen this very piss poor…bitchy attitude on your part."

"All right. You know what?" May stops Drew once again as she begins to get very ticked off with the person next to her. She points the finger in the face of the teen, explaining to him, "I did _not_ come into this lounge to talk to you just so you could call me a bitch. If that's the case, then we are done."

May turns to leave, but Drew immediately responds by pointing his finger in her face, saying, "I did not, I repeat, did _not_ call you a bitch. I said that your attitude in recent years has been like that of a bitch or two that I've met in my day, so let's just clear that crap up right here, right now. Don't you dare twist my words, May Maple."

"Oh, just like you were going to twist my words to Dawn if I didn't speak to you in private?"

Drew has to take a moment and keep his composure as May has spoken the truth to him about just what he was going to do if she didn't go along with his commands.

"Did I strike a chord with you, Drew?"

"Touché, May," Drew replies as he clenches the bridge of his nose and turns away from his ex for a second before he goes off topic saying, "But there is something else that's been on my mind since yesterday. It was all Dawn's idea to do it, but we heard you guys talk yesterday along with Kenny and Zoey. Do you honestly think that you can find love in some other girl?"

The question does not carry any shock value that Drew expected it would deliver due to Dawn's revelation that she spied on May several hours ago. May smiles and answers "No. I can't and I won't ever find love with some other girl, because Kelly is not just some other girl. I love her with all my heart and soul. She is my rock and my foundation. She's the smartest, most caring, loving, funny and affectionate person I've ever known, and she has more personality in her pinky finger than you could _ever _have in your entire body."

"May, you are not a lesbian!" Drew states. "Stuff like this can't last! What about children? Eventually, you're gonna want kids! And what about the media? You're a public figure! It just can't work for a girl like you. You're not strong enough for it! Right now, you're just hungry for some attention and you found someone that would give it to you without question."

"Well, that's the way it should always be, Drew," May responds with confidence in her words. "And as far as that other nonsense you're talking about, _whatever_ bridge Kelly and I come to, we will cross…together. She is the reason why I can easily get over a piece of trash like you who's cheated on his ex-girlfriend _and_ his current girlfriend."

"Oh, go to hell, May!"

"Oh, did I strike _another_ chord with you, Andrew?" May asks, now getting really cocky in her speech. "Yay me! Hooray me! Well, maybe I ought to keep it going! You want to know something _really_ funny? For my entire life, I have always been attracted to the same sex. Yes, I was young when I first met Kelly, and wasn't quite sure at the time, but you were around me more than she was when I began my journey. My family, my friends and your friends, even though they meant well, kind of pressured me into being with you, even though I…didn't really want to talk about it at all. I was sorting out my feelings then and would get embarrassed at times. But here's the clincher; I realized without a doubt that I was gay while I was with you."

"You…" Drew says, becoming irate at this revelation.

"Yes, I," May retorts with a near evil smile. "I knew it, but was too chicken to come out. I thought I could hide it, because you were good to me at one time. I thought I could just slip through the cracks. I thought I was lucky to find that one in a million man."

"You never were in love with me, were you?"

"I drifted away from you a little bit after I found out what I knew to be true," May responds, skirting Drew's question in the process, "and I tried my best to love you, but I think even you saw that things were not working out. We weren't gonna have that fairytale romance that everyone said we would and you drifted away from me. You cheated on me, and you can't deny it. But through that, I found my ticket out. I should have left sooner, but the important thing is I left before it was too late."

Growing tired of the allusions and hinting toward his question, Drew gets directly into the face of his old flame and asks her one more time, "But did you _ever_ love me, May?"

Backing away and allowing the teen girl to answer his question, Drew waits for a one word answer to come out of the mouth of his ex. "I think…" May begins.

"No," Drew interrupts. "No thinking. Just answer my question with one word; did you ever love me at one time or another? Yes…or no?"

Honestly, it's not a difficult question for the coordinator who is supposed to be in training. She knows what the answer is and is not ashamed to say, "Yes," she answers with one word just like Drew asked her to. "But that doesn't mean anything anymore, Drew," May clarifies, "because I don't love you anymore. Besides, you have Dawn, and like I said near the receptionist's desk, just seeing you at times makes me want to throw up! So now that you've got your answer and we've talked, I'd like to see Dawn now, please."

Putting his head down for a bit, Drew realizes that May has done everything that he has asked for and based on his own word, does deserve to see Dawn. "Okay. Dawn's room number is 621."

"Thank you," May says out of the kindness of her heart before she makes her way to the exit of the lounge.

Before she can open the door, Drew says to his ex, "I just want you to know that I still love you, May."

This revelation causes May to stop and clench both of her fists, grit her teeth and shake throughout her entire body before she can leave the lounge. Drew is showing in her mind an incredible amount of audacity. She can't just leave here without giving her former lover a piece of her mind.

Turning around, May shows Drew just how irate his most recent comment has made her. Running so she can stand face to face with the coward in charmer's clothing, she sincerely asks him as calm as she can possibly muster, "Are you retarded? Did you hear even a _word_ of what I just told you? Yes, I did love you at one time, but those days are over, Drew! Do I need to spell it out for you? We are O-V-E-R! And if you love me so much, tell me where does that leave your current girlfriend Dawn?"

"I like her," Drew admits, "but…I don't love her like I love you. I'm bored."

"Why in the hell are you even with her?" May asks dumbfounded at everything she is hearing. "You don't see me with you, do you? No! Want to know why? Because I don't freaking love you! That's why! I'm _only_ gonna be with people that I love, and you're not even on the list! It's simple as one plus one; if you don't love her then don't be with her, and don't cheat on her with one of your best friends when you get bored!"

"Oh, we're back to that again, huh?"

"You know, I wish you knew just how stupid you sound right now!" May tells Drew while he and she are still a nose's distance from touching one another. "You're ignoring your own shortcomings, yet can still find the time to point out everyone else's alleged flaws. You're telling a person you claim to _love_ that you want them to go to hell."

This statement causes May to scoff for a bit before she adds, "You are a piece of shit that has never been faithful to anyone!" Leaning in as close as she can without touching Drew, May wraps up what she has said by adding, "And you can't be faithful to anyone else in this world without first being faithful to yourself."

Whatever is within him that causes Drew to act out in this manner, he will never know, but something causes the teen to lean in and force himself onto May with a mouth to mouth kiss. To say the very least, it catches May off guard, especially when Drew clasps her back on both the right and the left.

Knowing that a lot can happen in this position, May pushes off of Drew and with her being significantly taller, he has to take a couple of steps back to stay on his feet.

"What the fuck, Drew?" May yells in complete anger and hatred. "What are you thinking, huh?" she asks again before she slaps him as hard as the force of her right arm will allow across his cheek. While disoriented for that one moment, May grabs the coordinator by his black shirt and informs him, "Never touch me again, asshole! Ever! You understand?"

Shaking while in the grip of his ex, Drew finds it hard for the words to come out of his mouth, but May has a way of making him talk. Shaking him once again, May screams to Drew, "Do you understand me?"

"Yes, I do," Drew squeaks from his mouth, legitimately scared out of his shoes.

"621?"

"Yes, May. 621."

Getting what she needed the entire time, May thanks Drew by dropping him to the carpet on the ground. She leaves for the door once more, but doesn't leave until she leaves the shaken coordinator with these parting words. "Follow me, and you'll regret it. Oh, and I don't think Dawn will appreciate the fact that you're giving your ex Valentine's Day gifts behind her back, either." May then leaves the lounge and Drew for floor six of the hospital and Dawn.

* * *

A/N: Wow! That's about all I can say about this chapter! Next chapter has May and Dawn's confrontation, and some new revelations.

By the way, for the readers of this story, if you haven't already noticed, I'm changing the rating of the story from 'T' to 'M'. Little will change with the story, though, and for all of those who go to SPPF; I will post this whole story on that site chapter by chapter.

Until next time, it's been Rave!


	12. Still a Girl, Nowhere Near a Woman

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Conway, Kenny and May make a two to three minute walk to the hospital and May goes to the receptionist asking to see Dawn. Drew comes to the front desk as well. Conway and Kenny wait in the waiting room and the exes talk in a nearby lounge about everything from Drew's infidelity to May's lesbianism. And finally, the revelation comes that Drew still loves May and only talks badly about her to Dawn to get her off his back. May becomes irate, especially when Drew forces a kiss on her lips. May asks for Dawn's hospital room and Drew tells her it's '621'.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 12- Still a Girl, Nowhere Near a Woman)

* * *

Through a simple following of arrows, most things in and out of this world can be found, but the coordinator in her black sweat suit and matching bandana could care less about what's out there as opposed to what's in—Room 621, that is.

If Drew told the truth to her just like he promised not that long ago, then May should find one of her fiercest rivals in this aforementioned room. Although she knows she never should, she has to assume that she'll find Dawn resting in her bed given her alleged condition. With all these thoughts and so many other thoughts about her breakfast date, her parents and her friends, she neglects to notice that she is now walking towards room number 625.

"Oh, crap," she says unconsciously as she realizes that her mind has been wandering on this and many other issues. As she chuckles at her minor gaffe, she turns on her heel and walks several steps to her ultimate destination. Seeing the sign with the number placed to the right of the partially open door, May also notices that the sign has tape on it with the name 'Dawn D. Berlitz' written on a strip of paper.

"Okay," May prepares out loud. She adds "It's now or never," and looking through the small crack in the door, she finds her younger adversary reading from the Saturday morning newspaper. To naturally get her attention, May raps on the door five times in quick succession.

Putting the paper down on her food tray, Dawn looks up from whatever article, listing or comic she might have been reading to see the last face she really wanted to see at the moment. She'll admit that she felt very off kilter earlier that morning complaining of headaches and some confusion. As stubborn as the top coordinator can be at times, she agreed to go at the behest of Drew, who called the ambulance to come get his girlfriend early this morning.

Though initially reluctant to receive the treatment, she has had no complaints as of now. It was nothing that two aspirin, a good night's rest and some careful examination won't fix. In fact, when she woke up early the next morning, she felt very good; until Drew told her what he believed happened to her and who he thought caused the concussion.

She says to this same person, who is behind the cracked door, "You know, you have a lot of goddamn nerve coming here knowing that you put me here."

Finally opening the door so she can come inside the room, May restrains herself from wanting to shake Dawn out of her shoes instead opting to say, "If you can remember what the heck happened, I only put you here out of self defense. But I didn't come here to argue with you. I just came to tell you…"

"More lies?" Dawn interrupts.

"Shut up, Dawn!" May retaliates back to the resting coordinator. Holding back as best as she possibly can, May takes a few deep breaths to calm herself. The standing coordinator says once more to Dawn while looking at her from across her hospital bed, "What lies—you know what, I'll say it again; I didn't come here to get into a freaking argument with you. That's not why I'm here. I just came to give you the truth. Nothing more and nothing less."

"What happened was that you cornered me in the bathroom, you slapped the taste right out of my mouth, and when you called me a…lesbian prude, you snapped something inside of this, Dawn!" and May accentuates her point by actually pointing to the top of her covered skull several times. "I cornered you, and apparently, the truth must still hurt, because you sought to beat the hell out of me for it. Luckily, I stopped you with, well…one lucky shot. And that's the whole story. No bias, no boyfriends and no bullshit. You were wrong again, Dawn."

"You shut up, May!" Dawn now says to the storyteller before her. "Are you honestly trying to tell me that you didn't deserve it? After everything that you've put my relationship through, you want me to believe anything that ever comes out of your mouth?"

"What _I_ did?" asks May nearly dumbfounded. It's not that hard for her at this point to keep her cool as the previously resting coordinator becomes more and more ridiculous the more she speaks. As May listens to the sound of the beeping heart monitor that her counterpart is attached to, it's obvious that Dawn has a lot of growing up to do. The feeling almost makes May feel sorry for the Twinleaf Town native. "Hey. I suppose I can't change the way that you think no matter what I do. That's what I get for trying to talk sense into a little girl."

Before interjecting herself into May's quasi-lecture, Dawn gasps and says, "Screw you, May Maple, and to hell with anyone that thinks that I'm still a girl! I am sixteen years old, but I still hear this shit! I heard it from my mother when she said that she didn't think Drew was right for me, I heard it from Drew when he tried to convince me that he no longer has feelings for you. Why does everyone insist on treating me like a child?" Dawn asks, tearing up at the end of her rant.

"Simple; because you're acting like a child!" May answers. "You are still star struck at the fact that so-called Type-A's would give you the time of day in a clock shop. Gary did it, and so did Drew. I tried to reach out to you, though."

"Enough. I don't need a damn lecture from the likes of you."

"I can see it in your eyes. You're very scared."

"You don't know me, May. Not in the least bit, so buzz off."

"I know where you've been and where you are. You are in the same situation I was those many years ago," May claims, attempting to relate to her fellow female coordinator. "I wish I had someone there that could tell me that love was more than attraction and more than the physical. But you had that, didn't you, Dawn?"

"Okay, you've got a warning," Dawn lowers her voice as a sign that she doesn't want to hear this from the person across the room in the least bit. "No more about that, okay? He apologized. She's gone, so it's…done."

"No, it's never done, Dawn. Like I told you over a year ago," May reminds the coordinator, "Drew will get bored with you like he got bored with me."

"Get bent, dyke!"

"It's not what you're called, but what you respond to, Dawn, and how you responded to warnings from me, someone who wasn't a friend of you and quite frankly didn't think much of you for what you did to me, was appalling. I hated you, but I nevertheless reached out to you, and you shot me down telling me I was crazy for saying that Drew would cheat on someone he truly loves."

"Well, I've got news for you," May educates to the struggling student, "he does cheat. On me, on you and most important, on himself. Anyone can deny it when they don't see it, but you'd have to be a damn fool to see the cheater—_your_ cheater in the act, and still forgive him. I mean with how far he and Solidad go back…"

"I said, enough!" Dawn screams as May just spoke the ultimate in buzz words. As if the tables were turned one year ago, she caught Drew in the act with Solidad at their hotel. While clearly distraught at the entire situation, she nevertheless decided to try to make things work with her beau. The reality of the situation, the pain and the act is just too much for this young girl to take on at once, so she decides to remove the problem. "Get out, May."

"Dawn, you can't keep running from…"

"I said get out!" she screams at the top of her lungs in an attempt to convince May that this is not the place she needs to be right now. Looking for something to throw, she attempts to reach for the vase of white roses on the dresser drawer, but can't pull herself out of the bed to get it. Giving up on that minor conquest, she instead opts to throw the television remote control across the room. Seeing what Dawn is about to do prompts the older teen to leave her room and shut the door behind her.

Once May is gone, the real Dawn Berlitz comes to the surface. With both hands over her the front of her head, the girl bawls her eyes out and the tears flow like river water down her face. She just can't deny it. Everything that May told her before she was forced out was true. But by no means could she let it on that all of this scared her to death. What would people think if they knew that she couldn't make things work with Drew?

"What do I do?" she asks herself through tears. For her, it's an honest question, but the only problem is that she has no honest answer. She is worried.

* * *

A/N: Oh! What happens now? May has spoken with both Drew and Dawn, and it hasn't taken much time, so she can now go to her breakfast date. Find out what happens when all the major players (minus Drew and Dawn and some others) come together, and much more is still to come!

Until then, it's been Rave!


	13. All Together Now

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

May goes to Dawn's room and tells her what happened that sent her to the hospital. Dawn doesn't want to hear it, and the otherwise healthy coordinator calls May names like liar and dyke. May doesn't want to argue. Dawn spews more venom claiming that Drew and Johanna have said she's acting like a child. May says she is a child for ignoring her warnings that Drew would cheat, and it is true that Drew cheated on Dawn with Solidad a year ago and Dawn saw it but still stayed with Drew. Dawn becomes irate and throws a remote control, prompting May to leave. Once she's gone, Dawn bawls as she's scared of what people will think if she can't make it work with Drew.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 13- All Together Now)

* * *

The calm quiet that is the first floor waiting room makes it an easy atmosphere for anyone to open up, but for one of the two teen males sitting next to each other in the waiting room; it's still a difficult process. Despite this, Kenny is trying. It's been about ten minutes since they've come in.

"Do you have any brothers or sisters?" he asks Conway.

"Seth Ericsson is my younger brother," Conway says, though there is still a great deal of hesitation in his voice. "You might have seen him in the Sinnoh League once or twice. He's…gotten all the way to the quarterfinals one time. And I also have an older sister named Jordan. Those are my only siblings."

Kenny has gotten a decent amount of information about Conway. Though Kenny knows about the older guy's many likes and dislikes and his long career as a trainer, he can see right through his emotions as if the older teen were transparent. Conway is a nervous wreck, and this is likely due to what he plans to do with Kenny late tonight.

"You've never done this before, right? I mean, you've never had sex with another guy, have you?"

Conway gives off somewhat of a forced chuckle before he inquires of Kenny, "What do you think? I mean to hear from your girlfriend that _she_ had thought about it…it makes you come face to face with feelings that _you've_ had throughout your life dating all the way back to kindergarten that you thought you could suppress forever, but…life is pretty damn funny."

"If it weren't," Kenny admits, piggybacking on what his future partner just said, "it'd be pretty damn crappy." Turning serious, the Twinleaf town resident assures his older male counterpart, "But you don't have anything to be scared of, Conway. If it helps at all, I want you to think of it like…the first day at a new school, or your first pokemon battle against a gym leader. You are just trying something new. And think about this; unlike the first day of school and your first battle, you have people who love and care for you right next to you the entire way. Holly will be there. Zoey will be there, and I won't force you to do anything you don't want to do, okay? You're in the absolute best of hands."

For Conway, it is not as simple as being in good hands as it is being just plain scared. There are many things that come with activity considered to be very taboo such as bisexual swinging. The most glaring problem that arises is the stigma that comes with it if a person is found out. A person's reputation can be shattered if this cat is ever let out of the bag.

"Kenny, I'm just," Conway begins, struggling to find the right words to explain what he's feeling at the moment. "I was out of my hotel room early this morning thinking about all of this beforehand, and…I know you've said that it's best to not think the way I've been taught to think. You said that I should think, or rather; see, through another person's eyes. If I took your advice, then I shouldn't fear the glaring unknowns but I'd embrace the unique differences that we all have. After tonight, we go back to…dare I say our normal lives."

"I'll let that one slide," Kenny says, quite perturbed at Conway's use of his second to last word, "but that might as well be a four-letter word, so don't use it again. I mean it. You were saying?"

Somewhat jolted by the coordinator's stern tone as it pertained to his previous comment, Conway takes a second to weigh his next answer to Kenny's question, saying, "I've always been curious, and knowing that Holly has been curious has made me a little bit more comfortable."

"What's your biggest fear?"

"Getting caught and being found out is my biggest fear. Then to explain to people like my family and friends what you did without them first making heads or tails of the story would probably rank second."

"No one will be the wiser," Kenny promises the trainer in green. "Just act like you would in an everyday fashion, and you'll be fine. Okay?"

Revealing this to Kenny and just hearing him speak helped the very antsy Conway relax just a little bit more. Feeling the tension of this scenario literally swell all the way up to his eyelids, the bespectacled teen's vision is clouded quite a bit, so he takes a few seconds to clean his glasses and rub his eyes.

While deeply rooted in his activity, Conway nevertheless hears Kenny say, "Eventually, we're gonna have to kiss," and the reminder causes the eighteen-year old to drop his glasses onto the carpet floor, though he does not break them.

Picking them up, Conway examines the lenses and the frames and sees that there is no clear damage, so he quickly puts them back over his eyes. Taking a deep draw of the dry hospital air, he says to the younger but more experienced teen, "I know that."

As Kenny explains to Conway once more, "So society likely told you that it's no good to rush into any sexual encounter and that we should pace. Well, believe it or not, they're right...for once. All we are doing is speeding things up for our _unique _situation. We've gotten to know quite a bit about each other personally; this would be like we're on our…second or third date together if we were chaste. It's time to go to the next level and kiss."

Like he said, Conway had never done this before. They say that nothing can prepare people for the many experiences they will have in life and for an otherwise heterosexual male at the peak of his libido about to kiss another teen boy, nothing could be further from the truth.

Hanging his head for a moment, the older male has to defer to Kenny. Looking up, he admits, "You're right. We should try to eliminate the awkwardness before we actually…do it. Uhh…"

"Just close your eyes and lean in, Conway," Kenny directs. As the commander to this contact leans in while his eyes are open, he notices that Conway is going to miss his lips leaning forward, so he adjusts himself to Conway's movement. Just a few seconds pass before lips touch lips and the two share their first kiss. Getting deeper into the kiss, the young adult is quickly losing any previous inhibitions that he had about this step, and he would even admit to liking his present activity with Kenny.

Suddenly, the creak of the door leading into the room causes the two to have to pull away from the lip lock. The door of the waiting room is opened by May, who has returned from her visits with both Drew and Dawn to tell her companions, "Okay, Kenny and Conway. I've done my time, and we can go back to the hotel." Once May closes the door behind her, she sees that the two teens are sitting next to each other looking as if they are about to be called in by the doctor themselves. Kenny appears to be sweating a little bit and Conway is tapping his right foot onto the carpet.

"Is everything alright, you two?" she naturally asks.

"Yeah," Conway answers far too quickly.

"Well, like I said, I finished my business, so we can go back to the hotel. I hope I'm not too late to have breakfast with Kelly. Come on."

At the behest of May, both young men get up from their waiting room seats and head back to the area of the automatic sliding doors that lead outside to the cool air of the early morning. Once outside, the two can clearly see the large arena that will hold first round appeals of the Grand Festival and the finals tomorrow. Not that far away from this arena is the hotel where all three are staying and where May wants to get to as soon as possible just to see Kelly once again.

She is so anxious that she insists to running the rest of the way in a walk that takes less than five minutes at a leisurely pace. By running, she leaves both Kenny and Conway in the dust. While far behind May and assuming that she cannot hear either of them talking from behind, Kenny informs Conway, "You're a pretty good kisser."

Flattered, the older boy replies like a giggling schoolgirl, "Thank you."

"I want you to take the rest of the morning and some of this afternoon thinking about your dos and don'ts list for tonight. The four of us will get together and swap lists away from everyone else, okay?"

"No problem," Conway says, and the two make an effort to catch up to the now sprinting May Maple, who is now running across crosswalks to get to the hotel. While the distance between the two gentlemen and May is nowhere near what it was just a minute ago, she is still far ahead the two as she can now see the entrance to the Slateport Milton hotel less than a block away. Knowing that the distance is shrinking with every step, May goes even faster, but rushing eventually catches up to her.

As she sees the doors to the hotel, she crashes into another person before they can get to the doors. Both of them bang heads and come down to the concrete ground. Rubbing her head and moaning in response to her temporary pain, May hears someone ask, "Hey, why don't you watch where you're going next time?"

The voice sounds familiar, but before May can turn around and find out who it is, another familiar voice calls out, "Harley!" Running to the scene, this young teen immediately comes to the aid of the older man, saying, "Harley. Oh my God, are you alright?" Not waiting for him to answer, this boy with glasses turns to the ultimate cause of the accident, asking her, "What the hell is your problem? Seriously what's the big…" the young man has to stop when he sees just who he's talking to. "May! Hey girl, how are you doing?" he exclaims before engulfing the older girl in a big hug.

Eagerly receiving the hug, May comments, "Hey, Max," and seeing his boyfriend get up from his temporary seat, May greets Harley accordingly, as well.

While in this position, Kenny and Conway are able to easily catch up to May without further exertion. Seeing as they both know the male trainer and coordinator from the Hoenn region quite well, both teens from the Sinnoh region greet Harley and Max with a respectable handshake. Talking for just a little bit, May makes the suggestion that they move their discussions to the inside of the hotel. With no arguments from anyone, they move their discussion to the lobby of the luxury suite and into the direction of the dining hall.

Once inside, May and the four gentlemen with her see that while the number of people inside the hall is still large, it is nowhere near as big as about half an hour ago when she planned on joining her girlfriend. Through the dwindling numbers in the hall, she finds it easier to spot a few people that she did not expect to see. Running to a table with four, she exclaims, "Mom! Dad!" before giving both Norman and Caroline a hug and a kiss and saying hello to Kelly's parents too.

"Well, it's about time, May," Norman says. "We've been waiting almost half an hour!"

"Honey," Caroline lightly scolds.

"I…had to take care of something," May half admits, "You'll probably find out what it is before long."

"You're forgiven," Norman says, "but what I wanna know is—hey look who it is!" May's father stops to see his only son come close to him along with his boyfriend and a few of their friends. The cycle of greeting continues as the Maples and the Marins greet Max, Harley, Conway and Kenny when they arrive to the table. Just a few scant seconds later, Zoey and Holly get up from their table and go to their respective boyfriends giving each of them hugs with Kenny giving the redhead a kiss on her forehead.

Conversations aplenty are hot in the dining hall right now as this group of eleven branches out into different chats between the different groups. Zoey and Holly speak with Kenny and Conway naturally wanting to know where their beaus have been, Max talks with his father and Harley about how things are going in the Johto region at the moment with Harley and May speaks with her mother, Erik and Julia about her appeal and the dress that Caroline has made especially for May.

Suddenly, once everyone has really gotten into their talks with one another a loud whistle sounds out within the dining hall, causing this pack of eleven to turn in the direction of the piercingly loud noise. All of these people turn to find Kelly with a whistle around her neck and no smile on her face whatsoever. Standing at both of her sides is the tandem of Brock and Pike Queen Lucy.

Kelly begins, "It's nice to see you all here in one place. Especially you May. You're dressed for training."

"Hey, Kelly," May greets and as she walks to her girlfriend, Kelly puts up her right arm as a signal for her to stop.

"Like I was saying, you've been slacking in your training, May," she informs the competitor. "Fortunately, your dad is here to monitor you and as you can see, I made a call to Brock and Lucy. Brock has a sparring partner in line for Blaziken and his girlfriend Lucy has several pokemon on site to practice moves with."

"Practice?" Holly questions out loud. Talking to Kelly, she informs her, "You know, Kelly, if you want to, Conway and I can give May…"

"We're fine. Thank you, Holly," Kelly says sternly in an attempt to vaguely show her disdain for Holly's most recent actions with Zoey. "Now let's go, May. We have a lot to do and very little time to do it."

May takes in one deep breath and follows her girlfriend outside onto the practice field. Not that far away from the pair is each one's respective parents at the tail of this human chain are May and Kelly's good friends who've come to see her take the title and trophy for herself.

The time has come for her to make perfect her practice. It truly is now or never for the Petalburg coordinator.

* * *

A/N: The next chapter has a brief Drew and Dawn moment as Dawn checks out of the hospital and the rest is the opening training session with May and Kelly.

Until then, it's been Rave!


	14. Dazed, Confused and Misunderstood

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Conway and Kenny open up to each other prior to their swinging session that evening and finally kiss. May enters around this time, but does not suspect anything off with the two. The three go back to the hotel but May literally crashes into Harley before she can get to the door. She also runs into Max, and they all head inside to find the Maples, the Marins, Zoey and Holly. All eleven of these people have a conversation before Kelly breaks it up with a whistle. With Kelly is the couple of Brock and Lucy and Kelly insists that May start her training right now. May does not argue.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 14- Dazed, Confused and Misunderstood)

* * *

With her backpack over both of her shoulders, all that's left to put on is her white hat, though she wonders why she even bothers with that. Dawn has had more than her share to think about these past several hours as she gets ready to check out of the hospital with Drew and see his appeal. Though she is too proud to admit it to anyone, May was very much spot on with her words concerning Drew. Despite this, she doesn't know what to do about it. She wants things with her current boyfriend to work so much that it hurts.

Like being cheated on at least once that she knows of and many more times that she's all but sure of, the pain does not increase bit by bit so much that the pain continues to stay within her like a burden and does not let up in its fervor. It stores itself within the recesses of the mind of the second generation coordinator and builds up like a stack of old newspapers just taking up space. It just hurts, but facing people that said that she should not tread on these dangerous waters would only add onto the shame she feels right now.

While her head is down onto her chest, she looks out the window of her hospital room. Dawn gets a very good look at the Slateport Stadium. She thinks about the stadium and it makes her think about a much easier time in her life. The native of Twinleaf thinks about how she would travel with her former friend Zoey and coordinate in arenas sitting 50,000 or more people for Grand Festivals like the one she's competing in right now. She thinks about this and is shaken from her thoughts from the opening of the door and the slithering of a real snake in the grass into the room.

"Are you ready, Dawn?" Drew asks.

After a second, she answers, "Yes. I'm all set."

Looking directly into the eyes of Dawn, Drew lets her know something of great importance. "You know, Dawn, I spoke to the officers that are stationed at this hospital…they told me that if you want, you could press charges on May for attacking you and putting you in here. I was wondering if you would like to press charges against May? I mean, you said so yourself that she admitted to it."

Dawn needs a moment. Her opinion on May in the last hour or so has changed now that she has gotten the chance to really think about what she said. No one has ever confronted her about the incident with Solidad until today even though it was over a year ago.

While she still has a hard time remembering exactly what went down with her and May in the bathroom, she does have May's words and Drew's words to consider. While she knows that the coordinator with her right now has lied directly to her face, made excuse after excuse and asked for forgiveness time in and time out, May has no real reason to lie to Dawn given the fact that she doesn't think much of her yet still tries to help in whatever way she can. The advantage goes to one May Maple.

"I…I don't think so, honestly," Dawn admits alluding to which one's words she preferred to listen to. "May did tell me that it was an accident that she knocked me out, and…I did leave our hotel room angry. Who knows what could have happened? Who knows what I was capable of doing in that angry a mood? I just can't see it, and if _I'm_ not positive of what I've done, I'm not comfortable with pressing any charges on someone else."

Drew shrugs it off and says to Dawn, "It's you're call. Come on. My appeal starts in about two hours."

"All right," Dawn concedes, and with Drew leading the way, the two make a short walk to the front desk of the sixth floor and check out of Slateport Hospital. Once outside and walking to the arena, Dawn gets a much larger view of the stadium where she, Drew, May and several others will do battle with their pokemon and continue with traditions dating back many generations.

In a daze and almost appearing to daydream as thoughts of the stadium cloud her mind, Drew asks her, "Are you sure that everything's alright?"

No amount of heart that goes into this question is worth the answer she was about to give, but what else could Dawn possibly say to make things better? "I'll be fine. I'm just a little woozy." Then, much like her childhood days, Dawn brings out those four magic words that once really did make things not so bad. "No need to worry," she says to Drew as they continue to walk to every coordinator's goal.

If things were only that simple for Dawn once again. If things were only that easy, but life has way of leaving you in a daze at times. Life can make you feel alone even in the largest of stadium crowds, and life does not apologize.

This, without question, is her life.

* * *

As the gallery consisting of everyone from breakfast with the lone exception of Brock looks on at the practice field before them, they really like what they have seen so far. The initial session began with some target practice for Blastoise, taking Gary Oak's advice to look for more than just power out of the fully evolved water pokemon. After nailing that exercise, May went on to demonstrate her Kecleon's color changing adaptations and other abilities outside of its normal type for several minutes, and then moved onto her only Sinnoh region pokemon and only electric type, Luxio. For several minutes, they worked on non-electric attacks as a means of charging up to a final electric attack rivaling those of her old traveling companion from Pallet.

This activity involving three of her pokemon in her arsenal takes well over half an hour, but it's all in the name of whom among her six is most ready for this afternoon and tomorrow evening's action. While May merely gives commands to her good friends, the practice becomes very taxing for her as she watches her pokemon give it their all to show they are worthy for the challenges to come.

"All right, May," Kelly says stoically. "Let's see what Skitty has to offer."

"Very well," May replies and she takes out Skitty's pokeball, throws it, letting out her cat pokemon for the gallery to see. Starting out slow with some tackles, double slap and some examples of assist, May gets into more complicated attack combinations such as using sing and charm together at once. As they go through the various attacks with Skitty, Kelly has to admit that she's quite impressed with Skitty's progress during training, though she doesn't really show it. While May and the rest of her gallery also likes what she sees out of her pokemon, May doesn't want to say anything to give Kelly the impression that she's getting cocky going into her appeal.

"All right. That's enough for now, Skitty," Kelly says, stopping the cat pokemon. "You're doing a great job so far with your strength and cardio." Reaching into one of her pockets, she pulls out a pink pokeblock, feeds it to Skitty and brushes her fur for a little bit. She speaks out loud, "My only problem with the pokemon is…May seems to show more aggression now, but I'm not seeing that kind of aggression in all of the pokemon." Turning to May, she explains to her, "I'm happy to see the aggression, even though I have no idea where it came from. You really need it for this weekend, but even when you weren't that aggressive, you were working in harmony with your pokemon, and I think that's much more important."

Watching with Kenny to her right in the stands, Zoey agrees with Kelly's opinion on coordinator-pokemon harmonics. She speaks, "You know, I completely agree with what you're saying, Kelly."

May's trainer really doesn't want to hear from Zoey right now and Kelly lets her know this. "Thank you, Zoey, but nobody really asked for your opinion right now." Without question, this confuses the people in May's gallery a great deal, especially the tone in which Kelly spoke to Zoey, which was very offish and some might even consider rude.

The short haired coordinator cringes for a bit because of the way the pokeblock princess spoke to her, but she doesn't give it much more thought as she feels Holly rub her lap from her left side. This attention from the less-experienced teen causes Zoey to blush a tad bit, fortunate that no one around her notices the other part of her body that is currently red.

Looking at this activity from the stands, the full-figured girl doesn't pay much attention to May as she looks at both Zoey and Holly in complete disapproval. May until she turns her around, saying, "Hey, Kelly," May says to her girlfriend so no one else can hear, "all she did was give her opinion. Honestly, I can use all the help that I can get."

"May, you…look." How does Kelly explain this to May easily? "I'm sorry if you were turned off by that. It's just that Zoey did something recently with Holly that…pissed me off a lot."

"What? Zoey _and_ Holly? What did they do?" May asks, not expecting that response.

"They…I don't want to talk about it with everyone here, so…" Kelly blows her whistle to get the gallery's attention, exclaiming "All right! Let's take a break for fifteen minutes, and then we'll come back…" Kelly stops talking for a second because she notices Brock come running to their section of the practice field.

Brock immediately whispers into Kelly's ear, "I just made a call to the Charicific Valley, and Blaziken's sparring partner should be here in less than twenty minutes."

"Perfect timing, Brock! Thanks!" Kelly eagerly replies. While in conversation with Brock, May called back Skitty and as she packs up her items laid out on her section of the practice field, Kelly walks back over to Brock, who now has his arm around Lucy's shoulders.

Kelly has a favor to ask of the Frontier Brain. "Say, Lucy. You heard what I said earlier about aggression. Skitty…is most likely first in line to be May's pokemon for the first round appeal, so I was wondering if May could have a contest battle against your Skitty? We'll have a little 'anything you can do, I can do better' with the pokemon. What do you say?"

Lucy didn't even consider that type of strategy, but she has a feeling that it will work. She responds to Kelly with a hum, shuts her eyes and gives it some more thought. If Kelly's plan works, than May's Skitty will likely fight for attention by assuming the role of the dominant Skitty over her own. She's convinced that it will work…_if_ she can coax her cat pokemon into taking a dive. Opening her eyes, she tells Kelly, "Sounds good. All right, I'll get to work on that after the break."

Kelly thanks Lucy and the respective couples go in opposite directions with Lucy and Brock sitting back on the benches with the Maples, Harley and the Marins and Kelly and May heading for the locker rooms. As they make this walk, Kelly notices off in the distance Conway and Kenny talking off in the distance, but she also sees quite a ways away from the two teen boys both Zoey and Holly.

"So, Kelly," May begins while the couple enters the girl's locker room, "now that we're alone, just what is it about Zoey and Holly that has you so…pissed off in your words that you couldn't tell me in front of everyone else? I kinda saw it during breakfast. I know you're in your 'trainer' mode right now and wearing that hat, but you shot down Holly saying you didn't need her help and you did the same to Zoey just a few minutes ago. What's up?"

Kelly puts her right hand over her face for a second before she says, "Zoey is a goddamn hypocrite."

"Whoa! Whoa, Kelly!" May interjects at the language that her girlfriend is using. "Hypocrite? What makes her such a hypocrite and how does Holly factor into this? You still haven't explained that."

"You know all of that stuff that Zoey talked about yesterday about how she'd never cheat on Kenny after that whole fiasco with Dawn, and how she and Kenny have an open relationship and don't lie to each other?"

"Yeah."

"It's all bullshit, May," Kelly answers fighting back tears, refusing to cry for a lowlife like Zoey. "Conway and Holly are both here, and before Conway and Kenny came down to the dining room with you, I spotted Holly and Zoey seated together a few tables away. As sure as I'm standing here, May, I saw those two kissing each other on the lips!"

The only action that can come from the coordinator in sweatpants at the moment is a gasp of pure disbelief. "What?" she says outraged. "Kelly, that's a _big_ accusation to make."

"I know, and I saw them doing it! I swear! Both of them are two timing their boyfriends!"

"Well, do you plan on talking to either of them about this?"

"So they can deny it to my face?" Kelly questions, angry at the very idea of them being honest about something like this. "Screw that. I'm very pissed off at both of them for this shit, because this is absolutely uncalled for. I would _never_ do anything like that to you, much less out in the open for the whole Grand Festival to see."

May doesn't want to argue with Kelly when she gets like this. Despite that, it's one of the things that she loves about her longtime girlfriend the most. Whenever Kelly encounters a problem or an injustice happening somewhere, she will be the one to champion said cause. There is no denying that Kelly believes every single word that is coming out of her mouth at the moment concerning Zoey and Holly's wrongdoings, and if May were to believe in anyone walking this Earth, it would be Kelly. It's hard to argue with what she's saying for any casual observer. Though not completely convinced, May nevertheless plays along with Kelly's assumptions, asking her "If we aren't gonna confront them with this head on, than what do we do?"

Kelly can think about that with a hot head, so she takes a few seconds and paces back and forth just outside of the lockers. With her head cleared, she knows the best way to expose the two teen girls. Smiling, she comes up with the most masterful of plans. "We make them crack. Allude to it in private. I know Holly better, so I'll go after her and you can ask Zoey, but don't talk about any specifics. Eventually, they'll have to crack if we keep pestering them about this. But for now, let's just keep a low profile and catch them when they least expect it."

* * *

A/N: The next couple of chapters are a bit of a turn from the main storylines. Remember the odd ending to 'Giving of Yourself', the Valentine's Day special? We expand on that in the next chapter and some more. We also get into why Kelly was chosen to be May's trainer. All that is in the next chapter!

Until then, this has been Rave!


	15. Who Needs Grandchildren?

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Dawn checks out of the hospital with Drew. Though Drew opens up the possibility of pressing charges against May, Dawn isn't behind the idea because she's starting to get behind May's words, but she claims that she won't press charges because she doesn't remember what happened, period. May trains with Kelly in front of everyone back at breakfast. She uses Blastoise, Kecleon and Luxio before training with Skitty. During a break, Kelly reveals to May that the reason she's been so distant to Holly and Zoey is because she is sure they are having an affair with each other behind their boyfriend's backs. She suggests to a somewhat skeptical May that they make both girls crack under the pressure to get them to confess.

NOTE: The flashback in this chapter starts with the end of the one shot 'Giving of Yourself' and expands upon that.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 15- Who Needs Grandchildren?)

* * *

As the tandem of Kelly and May leave, their parents are left behind as well, to dwell and recollect.

Norman turns to the father of his daughter's girlfriend and wants to know, "They sure do make a great team, don't they?"

"Indeed," Erik answers. "You made a great call making Kelly May's trainer. I wasn't too sure of it because well…Kelly's not much of a battler and, no offense meant to her, she never will be. You can tell with her…coordinating is a hobby. Nothing more, nothing less."

"But she doesn't need to be a great battler or coordinator, Erik," Norman reminds his fatherly counterpart. "That's the great thing. As an Academy professor, she motivates people in Rustboro City everyday, and I wanted someone to motivate my girl to give it her all. Believe me, if I wanted someone who was skilled at coordinating, I would have this person with May right now, but Kelly brings in more than just skills as a trainer. She's counted on to be a leader, so there was no problem with that, but even that's not what was most important. The thing that stood out for me the most and caused me to recruit Kelly for the job was an important factor of…trust."

_FLASHBACK_

_Opening the door to the house, the first thing that Kelly and May notice is the dozen red roses sitting in a glass vase in the middle of the kitchen table. A card is leaning against the vase with the name 'Caroline' monogrammed on the outside. The sign of long lasting love that her parents show make May confident that she can share even a portion of that same type of commitment with Kelly. Looking off to the other room, May sees her father sitting on the couch with a glass of some drink on the coffee table. It appears that he has been expecting his daughter for some time. _

"_Come on, May. Kelly," Norman insists. "Have a seat. Your mother said that you had something to tell me."_

_As both May and Kelly sit down together, they hold each other's near hand and look to each other, affirming what they are about to announce. Seeing as Norman is her father, she begins by elaborating what she needs to let out. "You see, dad, earlier today, I had all of those valentines, and you told me that once I chose someone, I'd break a lot of guys' hearts."_

"_Yeah, that's right," Norman confirms. _

"_Well," May continues, choking a bit on that last word as she holds back a chuckle, "I think after I tell you this, it'll be clear that I'm breaking every guys' heart. That's why Kelly is here, because…she's my Valentine, and her gift to me is herself, and mine is myself. What I'm trying to say is…"_

"_No," Norman interjects thoughtfully, "I think I know. I think I get it."_

_May has to hold back her laughter as she once again thinks to herself, 'Daddy, you still have no idea. You'll never get it, but that's okay, because a lot of times, I don't get it. At least that's one thing that we have in common.'_

_Regaining her composure, May is determined to make her statement to her father, barring all consequences that could result. "Dad," she begins again, looking into the eyes of her favorite guy now and forever, "Kelly and I, we are…a couple. We have been a couple for almost two years. I'm…I'm a lesbian. Now, I know you might think that this came as a result of Drew, but I want you to know that Drew had nothing to do with this. I've just always felt this way." Looking in the direction of her belle she continues, "I can't explain it, she's just amazing, and I also want you to know that I never intended to keep this from you and mom forever. I just needed some time."_

_Unlike many times when teens her age, older and younger come out, May is all but certain that her father will not react negatively to this news. After all, he found out that his only son is gay, and Norman remains an incredible influence in Max's life, and helps his son's boyfriend Harley out whenever he can with coordinating. Even with all of this, May has to hear from her father that this is okay. With that, the girl would be on cloud nine._

_His face isn't showing any emotion at the moment. He's opening his mouth. "You two _are _in love," he tells May and Kelly. The top coordinator breathes out deeply and wipes the sweat off of her brow, relieved that her father is fine with her girlfriend. "No, honestly, I can tell that you two are in love, because you can't explain it, but you don't need to, because I've seen it."_

"_Your mom had talked to me about it one night when you had a sleepover. She said that she could tell the way you looked at each other during breakfast and…even though she said not to tell you about this, it's pointless to keep this secret now. One day, she did catch you two kissing."_

_Kelly and May both gasp upon learning that both Norman and Caroline knew about them for a long time. Each one knows that since having sleepovers as a couple, even though the two have not had sex, they have always made it a priority to show their affection for one another._

_May has to hold back her laughter once again. It seems that no matter how hard she and her girlfriend try, they just can't seem to keep their emotions in check, especially when they've been away from each other for longer than a spell. "What can I say?" she asks her father rhetorically. She honestly doesn't know what to say, though._

"_So, I've known about this for a while now," Norman reiterates. "Of course, I'm fine with it. I'll love you and Max as long as there's breath in my body, no matter what. Just be sure to take care of each other. Oh, and Kelly?"_

"_Yes sir?" Kelly responds marking her first time speaking in this exchange._

"_You're parents know about this, right?"_

"_Yes, sir. They do."_

_Nodding a few times, Norman replies, "Okay. Again, all I'm concerned about is your happiness and your safety, May. The world won't be as kind as your mom and I are, but with everything that happened with…him, you probably know that. But like I said, be there for each other. It's like this old proverb that I heard once that can apply to any couple claiming to be in love; 'Times will get tough, and the important thing to know is how to act when it happens. So fight when you have to, keep peace when you need to, but no matter what, always love.' If this is all that you say it is, you should have no problem doing that. Okay?"_

"_That was beautiful, dad," May compliments. Kelly agrees with her girlfriend and at the non-verbal request of Norman, the two walk up to him while he stands up, and all thereof them share a group hug in the living room. _

_Unbeknownst to the three, there is a set of eyes looking from the hallway leading to the bedrooms. It's Caroline, who has just gotten up from her nap after she heard some conversation. Getting up, she found what she hoped to see; a pact and unity between friends, family and loved ones has been sealed this Valentine's Night._

_Love, in its many ways, shapes and forms, is in the air, and this mother couldn't be much happier for her child and her love than right this moment._

* * *

_Some hours pass, and some souls are sleeping. As they sleep, these souls dream and hold fast to the people nearest to them in their dreams._

_Other times, though, all we are left with are two pillows, just like Norman. _

_Thinking that he was holding onto his wife, he is left confused and wonders how in the world his wife's skin could possibly feel like down feathers. Opening his eyes, he is given his answer; his wife is not even in there with him. _

_Shaking the sleep out of his eyes and the rest of his body, Norman gets out of the bed wearing his blue and black striped pajamas, opens the door to leave his bedroom and searches for his better half._

_He doesn't have to look around his house for long to find Caroline, who is standing by the open door of May's bedroom, one would assume to watch her daughter while she's sleeping._

_A call of "I wondered where you were," breaks Caroline from her present thoughts. She turns and is reintroduced to a familiar pair of lips. _

_It's a quick return, as Caroline pulls away and prompts her husband to look at May's bedroom. Listening to his wife, Norman looks at the bed, and cannot believe what he is watching. It's May tucked under the covers, but right next to her in the bed is Kelly. Both girls are clothed in their own pajamas, and both have their arms around each other as they rest._

_While Norman continues to just look at the scene before him with his bottom lip quivering and his medium-brown eyes glossing over with the initial indication of tears, Caroline says, "I heard your conversation with Kelly and May earlier. It takes a real man to love their children no matter what and not be ashamed to show it."_

_Though Caroline expected that her gym leader would thank her for the compliment, she does not expect him to say, while pointing to the scene in the bedroom, "No one can ever tell me that that's wrong." Norman than wraps his arms around the loving frame of his wife, crying his eyes out, which is something that he hasn't done since he was younger._

_He declares while in this position, "My little girl is growing up, dear. I hate it, but I love it at the same time because…I know I did the best I could. She's ready, and she has great friends and family to keep her and Kelly in check. People may ask me one day, 'Norman, if you had the choice to have two gay children or no children at all, what would you choose?' I'd choose my children each and every time. Who gives a damn, really? What does it matter?"_

"_Gay or not, I have the greatest children in the world, who in turn have the greatest partners that either could ask for. They're saving themselves for when the time is right. I can trust Harley, and now I know I can trust Kelly. And that's _all_ that should matter." And then, Norman says something that he never thought would come out of his mouth, "Who needs grandchildren anyway?"_

_With all the strength that she can possibly muster, Caroline actually lifts Norman a couple of inches up so that he's now standing back on his feet and gives him a hug while she chuckles at that last comment from her husband. In response, she claims, "I've heard that they can be noisy."_

_Through his tears, Norman is able to muster a chuckle from his system. His wife has always possessed a way with words, and though he's crying, they are nothing but tears of joy, which he will gladly shed knowing that his daughter could not be happier on this fourteen__th__ of February._

_All signs and arrows point to love, which not only trumps all, but is the greatest gift of them all, as well._

_END FLASHBACK_

"Of course," Julia chimes in. The reason why her daughter was chosen above anyone else is as clear as crystal. "It all makes sense now."

"The next day," Norman further elaborates, "we had breakfast together and what not. I got Kelly alone and told her that I know about her and May sleeping in the same bed together. She said, just like I thought she would, that she and May haven't done anything. I told her I believed her and though I would have preferred you asked me first, I'm fine with it. I said to her 'I have something more important that I want you to do for me and May,' and I asked her to train May for the Grand Festival."

"Initially, as you might expect, she didn't really take to the idea and she used the same excuses that you mentioned. But as I explained to her, something is telling me that you're the one for the job. I told Kelly that May trusts you and will listen to you. I'm a bit saddened to say that she's getting to that age where she might not listen to everything I say, but like I told Kelly, you hold her heart. At this point, she still wasn't convinced, but I finally got her to agree to it when I said I'd let her stay and train May over the next month."

"And let's give credit where credit is due, dear," Caroline interrupts. Turning to Erik and Julia, she says, "Thank you both for allowing Kelly to stay with us and travel with May for this length of time. I know how you feel. I have trouble letting my kids go, but I know eventually, they all have to."

"Here, here," Julia agrees.

"With what we've just seen in just this past half hour," Erik compliments, "I know that it was time well spent. You're right, Norman. They _do_ make a great team." That much Erik says to his wife and the Maples, but he thinks, 'and they're gonna remain a great team when they get married.'

"I don't know about you guys," Caroline adds, "but I want to see some more! What do the kids say? I'm…I'm pumped up for this! This is off the hook! Tight! All that and a bag of chips! Did I get that right, Norman?"

While the Marins teasingly laugh at Caroline's attempt to be 'hip', Norman answers his wife with a simple, "You're asking the wrong guy, honey. I haven't been hip since leisure suits went out of style."

"Oh, Norman! I've got you beat!" Erik brags. "Caroline just really likes the Grand Festival so far and wants to see some more. That's all she said."

"Really?" Norman asks confused. Turning to his significant other, he inquires, "Honey, why didn't you just say _that_? You had me here scratching my head wondering what language you were speaking."

Once more, Norman's small case of absent-mindedness comes to play, causing the proud parents, sans Norman, to laugh up yet another storm.

It's ironic, seeing as there is not a cloud in the sky on this sensational Saturday morning.

* * *

A/N: I'll just say that I absolutely loved writing this chapter and to stay tuned for the next one!

Until next time, it's been Rave!


	16. The Future is Now

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Norman along with his wife, Erik and Julia reflect on the events that lead up to Kelly being chosen as May's trainer for the Grand Festival. May and Kelly came out to Norman, who actually knew about it for a while. That evening, Norman finds Kelly and May sleeping together in the same bed, while still remaining chaste. It causes him to break down and fully understand that his little girl is now growing up. The two continue to talk some more and all of them are very excited to see what's planned for the remainder of May's practice session.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 16- The Future is Now)

* * *

In the backstage area of the Slateport Stadium, upcoming coordinators go about their final activities before attempting to qualify for the second round. Over 300 coordinators throughout the pokemon world migrate to this city and form the epicenter of the Hoenn region. It is the dream of every coordinator, young and old, to get to this point.

Going beyond this point is what coordinators hope for night in and night out.

Backstage to do her appeal in just a few minutes is one of the most popular young veterans in all of the sport. Thirteen-year-old Sandra Van Hollen is standing nearby the tunnel which serves as the entrance to the main arena floor. She is that rare but effective combination of style and substance in her white blouse with a black faux leather jacket, a knee-length plaid skirt and dark blue croc style shoes. In her mind, she is all ready to go do her appeal, but in the mind of another person, that is just not the case.

"Let me just check your face one more time," says a tall, thin and dapper mother named Savannah Van Hollen, who is Sandra's mother.

"Mom! For the last time," Sandra responds with whining, "I'm fine! If you check my face, then you're gonna want to check my outfit and then check my shoes, and then my pokeballs to see if they're in place, and after you're done with all of that, you're gonna want to go back to my face! How much more ready can I possibly be for this?"

"I understand, dear," Savannah concedes, "but this will be the first time that you and I will be competing in a Grand Festival together. I would really like for us to go to the second round, and…I want you to be at your best like I'm gonna be. Your pokemon aren't going to be the only ones who are judged in this appeal."

Rolling her eyes, Sandra is implicitly trying to let her mother know how perturbed she is at the moment. "Mom, I know that. This will be my _third _Grand Festival. I should be an expert on this whole thing by now. What to do, where to go, how to conduct yourself, the whole nine yards. I've got it! When I was eleven, I did pretty darn well all by myself in the Kanto region. I got to the quarterfinals the next day. I was ranked amongst the top twenty-five of coordinators in all the regions in my very first year! If I'm not ready now, I never will be ready!"

"Sandra Van Hollen?" shouts one of the male producers of the Grand Festival, "You're on in thirty seconds. Okay?"

"No problem," said the coordinator, who was quite anxious to get this over with. Unfortunately, she felt that her mother was holding her back for some reason. "Mom, once more, I will be fine. Don't worry about me here. Just concentrate on your appeal, because if _you_ don't make it through, our plan to go to the second round together is dead. I have to go now."

Sandra leaves her mother with those final lasting words before she makes her way to the tunnel entrance and walks out in front of a near-capacity crowd. As the tens of thousands of people cheer for the second generation coordinator as she walks to the main stage to begin her appeal, there is only one person in the entire arena that will admit to being downtrodden.

'She shows so much of that fire and determination that I had at her age,' Savannah wonders. "I just wish that she could slow down some," she speaks for however many people are in the backstage area. As Sandra makes her way onto center stage, she listens for the public address announcer to call her name before she happily receives the chants from the audience once again. Savannah is watching all of this from a television screen backstage. "My goodness, she's growing up so fast. It's like I'm living my childhood all over again. I know I have to tighten the reins at times but…she does make some great points. I just wish this wasn't so hard to watch at times."

It had been Savannah's dream to be a top coordinator and Grand Festival champion for many years, but when she became pregnant at the age of seventeen with her only daughter, those dreams were deferred as all of her efforts and planning now had to be focused on her child along the way.

But plans have a way of changing at the blink of an eye.

Savannah and the man who she had Sandra with had planned on taking care of their baby together without any concerns. After all, they were in love and despite this coming sooner than they and their family would have wanted, they accepted the choice they had to live with. His name was Connor Jackson, a young officer of the law for Mauville City.

Things were going fairly well for the young couple when one night while working on a call of some stolen bicycles, one of the alleged criminals took out a gun and shot Connor several times in the chest and once in the head. Though he suffered no gunshot wounds to his chest, the one shot to his head proved to be an unlucky one as he tragically died from the blood loss.

The loss of her partner put her in a grave state of depression for several months. Here she is a teenager, pregnant and the father has recently passed away. Her future appeared to be very bleak but a conversation with her mother set Savannah straight. She claimed that while Connor is no longer here, a piece of him still is in his child on the way.

These words from her loving mother along with some counseling were able to turn her mood from negative to positive in time for the arrival of her child. Sandra Connor Van Hollen came into the world some months later giving her reason to live every day from that day forth to the fullest.

As Sandra grew, she got a hold of a tape lying around of her mother in her coordinating days. Savannah caught her watching it and instead of being angry, she sat down and explained the entire situation saying that it was her dream to be a great coordinator, but that that's all in the past now.

Always being one to cheer up and reassure her mother when she needs it, Sandra suggested that she could still be a great coordinator if she wants to. She told her mom that just because she has a child, that doesn't mean that she has to give up on her dreams. Initially, Savannah didn't want to hear a bit of it, but when her parents whispered the same sentiments, she sought to continue her career while at the same time being the best mother she can for her daughter.

Through the many groups and organizations she is a part of, the bond between the two is strengthened and the memory of Connor Jackson remains alive in the two as they both wear memorabilia in his honor. While Sandra wears his badge as a necklace, Savannah keeps Connor's nametag in her pocket. Through this tragedy nearly fourteen years ago, this family has been made much stronger in its bond. It's enough to make a proud mother cry, which Savannah is near tempted to do while watching her daughter at work.

"Savannah," a voice softly calls while tapping the young mother on her shoulder, "are you okay?" She doesn't even need to turn around to know that the concerned person asking about her is Drew. Before she turns to meet the coordinator, she inconspicuously wipes a single tear from her face.

Quickly turning to her side, she indeed sees the coordinator from LaRousse and her mood is quickly changed to a positive one. She smiles as she knows the great reputation that Drew has crafted over the years and the influence he has been for her at times. It is no surprise that he has always been a popular figure with many of the ladies and female fans of pokemon coordinating, including the group that Savannah represents in the 'Mothers for Pokemon'.

"Forgive me if I say that you looked very down over there watching Sandra do her appeal. I wouldn't know, of course, but is it…tough watching your child knowing that she's doing so well in her craft?"

"I'll admit that at times, it's tough," she says. "My girl is like a rock star in this business and she's only thirteen. I was just like that in my day and at her age. I lived fast, and that has its consequences. Knowing what I know now, it's my job to keep her from all of that. But it's hard, my goodness is it hard."

Shrugging off her apparent sadness for now, Savannah places her focus back onto Sandra, who has just wrapped up her appeal with her Marshtomp to rave reviews from the five judges.

"It seems like Dawn and I are gonna have some competition for the second round tomorrow," Drew quips as the judges now flash Sandra's score up on the big screen. She really did impress getting two nines from both Contesta and the Slateport City Nurse Joy and a perfect ten from Suziko and the other two Joys, placing her grand total at forty-eight. She is all but a lock to be one of the twelve competing tomorrow.

"Speaking of Dawn, where is she?"

"She went to lie down for a bit. You might have heard she had a bit of an accident and suffered a mild concussion."

"I did. Will she be alright to compete in the Grand Festival?"

"She should be, and for precautionary reasons, the officials are gonna give her the last appeal of the night. I asked her if she'd like to see me do my appeal from backstage and she…Dawn said she'd think about it."

"I'm here!" a third voice sounds out. Coming from a door leading to the backstage area is Dawn Berlitz looking none the worse for wear after leaving the hospital less than two hours ago.

Giving a quick kiss to Drew on the lips, Dawn explains, "I asked the front desk to give me a wake-up call at 9:35 a.m. so that I could see your appeal. Glad I'm not late."

"Me too," Drew answers as a young teen makes her way back through the tunnel in the opposite direction. Everyone in the area either applauds Sandra's efforts or they say hello to her if they haven't already done so. Savannah gives her daughter a big hug congratulating her for performing so well under pressure.

"Yeah, you're really giving the old guard a run for their money," Dawn says.

"She could end up as one of the best, just like your mom, Dawn."

Dawn is a bit ticked off that her mother Johanna is being mentioned by Drew of all people, but she doesn't let Drew know this at all.

Through the current silence, Sandra says to her mom, "Well, all I really care about right now his how _you_ do, mom. Come on. Let's grab something to eat before your appeal."

"Okay, Sandy," Savannah retorts. "Let's go, and Drew? Good luck in your appeal. You too, Dawn."

Both coordinators thank Savannah for her support as she and Sandra leave the backstage position by heading for the nearest direction.

"Those two are great, aren't they Drew?"

"They certainly are."

"So you start your appeal," Dawn looks at her watch and sees that in just a few minutes, Drew will be on stage. "You start any minute now."

"Drew Emerson?" the same producer that called Sandra calls to Drew, "You're on in thirty seconds."

"That's my cue, Dawn. Wish me luck," he says, leaving his girlfriend with a kiss and like Sandra before him, he goes through the tunnel, receiving more cheers and applause than Savannah's daughter did.

Despite many of the unspoken problems that she has had with her boyfriend over the years, watching Drew coordinate has always been a real treat for her ever since first meeting the expert trainer.

As Dawn watches the emerald-haired one being introduced to the crowd, she hears the voice of an angry woman asks, "Where's Drew? The producers said he was here."

Turning around, the young Berlitz immediately regrets the action.

"Solidad," she irks out of her mouth like bitter medicine. She looks up to her face and then notices the stroller that she's pushing and the young baby with a blue hat over its head inside. She is immediately confused by all of this.

Coming to her own conclusion, she asks "You had a baby?" Solidad nods in response. "What—how? What happened? And who is he?"

Solidad tends to this boy, who appears to be sleeping, and she doesn't say a word to the young lady closest to her. Dawn notices a small tuft of green hair poke out of his hat. Everything around her seems to stop for a second as the second generation coordinator fears that the absolute worst is true.

"Solidad?" she timidly asks once again while the older woman tends to her child. "Who is he?"

After getting up from stroller level, Solidad levels with Dawn and explains, "This is Damien Donovan." After a pause, Solidad adds what she likely thought that the teen coordinator wanted to know. "My son with Drew."

* * *

A/N: Man, do I bring the drama or what? So, Sandra and Savannah will have a minor role in this fic (which was always in the plans) and the next couple of chapters breaks down how Solidad can claim that Drew fathered her child and will feature more of Kelly and May's training.

Until then, it's been Rave!


	17. How Not To Approach An Open Flame

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Savannah Van Hollen makes sure that her daughter and young star of pokemon coordinating Sandra is ready for her appeal. While she goes out with her Marshtomp and scores a forty-eight, all but securing her position for the second round tomorrow, Savannah reflects on everything from Sandra's late father to being coaxed back into the often wild and crazy world of coordinating by her daughter and her parents. Drew speaks with Savannah for a bit before Sandra comes back to the applause of everyone including Dawn, who has come back from rest in her hotel room. Dawn came to see Drew do his appeal at 9:45 a.m. and when he goes to perform, Drew's friend Solidad appears backstage rolling a baby carriage with an infant boy inside. Asking who it is, Solidad claims that the child is her son with Drew.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 17- How Not To Approach An Open Flame)

* * *

"So we're just waiting for May to come back to the practice yard and train with this…sparring partner that her trainer Professor Cruz-Marin has lined up for her," says Holly while talking to a loved one on the telephone. After waiting a few seconds for the person on the other end of the line to finish, Holly answers, "Okay. I love you too, dad. Look for me tomorrow, alright? Thank you and I love you," she concludes, shutting her phone in the process.

As she closes her cell phone, someone immediately seeks to speak with her. "Hey Holly," this person greets, forcing the Sinnoh native to turn around and see Kelly come walking up to her with a big smile on her face. Needless to say with the way the lilac-haired girl has spoken and acted towards her since everyone came together in the dining hall, Holly is more than a little bit caught off guard with the way Kelly currently looks.

"Hi Kelly," is the only way Holly knows how to respond to this cordialness. Risking the possibility of her head being verbally chopped off, Holly says to her former professor, "Look, forgive me if I seem like I'm reaching with this, but I've noticed that in the last hour, you've been pretty…distant towards me. Was it something that I did?"

'Ooh, Holly,' Kelly thinks, 'you are _not_ gonna get off that easily on me, girl. For what you've done to Conway and what Zoey has done to Kenny, you don't deserve any sympathy.'

"No, you're fine, Holly," Kelly assures her former student. "I'm sorry that I might've seemed distant towards you or Zoey." Kelly, though a major in nutrition, is using psychology to a 'T' by mentioning the name of Holly's future partner. Though few other people would even pay it any mind, Kelly sees that the pokemon trainer cringed a little bit upon the mentioning of the tomboy's name. If she wasn't sure that Holly had something for Zoey even after seeing the two teen girls kiss, then she knew it now.

"It's just that ever since May's dad gave me the responsibility of training her, I've been taking it extremely seriously. We have a training regimen, and I don't want to break it for fear that I'll over exert her or her pokemon prior to the appeal and the second round. So if I seemed very snippy at all, that's why."

"Oh no problem, Kelly."

As Holly turns to leave for the practice field, Kelly stops her. She asks Holly up front, "I know that it's been a while since I've taught you, but just what's the story behind you and Conway Ericsson getting together?"

"Conway?" asks Holly. Feeling comfortable in this conversation with her old professor, she answers, "Well, Conway I've known since I was…maybe fifteen or sixteen years old. Honestly, _how_ we got together is funny, because I had a crush on another trainer. I felt that I had let him down at one time, so I took time off to learn as much as I could about pokemon training from top to bottom."

"So you wanted to impress him by becoming a better trainer. Am I right?"

"That was in the plans. So that's when I spent my time in Academy. I had my one class with you, but I stayed in Rustboro and found another trainer that I met back in Hearthome City. That trainer was Conway and when I first met him, even though I'll admit that it's shallow, I always thought he was quite the geek. When we were in our Pokemon moves class, I got to see…just a great guy. I forgot all about the other trainer, even though now we're now really good friends."

"I got to see first hand just how great a team we were in battle when all of our class participated in a tag battle tournament. The thing is Conway and I didn't win. Even though I felt that I let him down, he reassured me that I did great. I wanted to run away because I believed that I did it again. He told me that I had to stop running away when things didn't go my way. He suggested that we talk over some coffee, and I said yes."

"And the rest is history?"

"Yeah. That's how Conway and I got together."

Deciding to put her master plan into action, Kelly asks her former student, "You'd never do anything to…hurt him, would you?"

"No way." Crossing her fingers in front of Kelly, she explains, "Conway and I are like this. He got me out of a depression that I had. I still have it at times, but he's helped me out tremendously. He's real cool about a lot of things and I feel like I could talk to him about anything that's on my mind."

"Yeah it's rare to find someone that will give you unconditional love," Kelly says, playing into Holly's games as long as she can muster. "I'm happy to have found someone just like that in my girlfriend."

That was the last thing that Holly expected to hear from Kelly. She had to make sure that she wasn't hearing things. "G-Girlfriend? Professor…"

"Yes, Holly. I'm gay," Kelly informs the older teen without a problem. "It's nothing to be ashamed of at all. All I've done is fall in love with someone, who happens to be a girl. Do you have a problem with that?"

"No! No, I don't honestly," Holly defends. "I just…it…who's your girlfriend?"

"May."

"May is your girlfriend?"

"Yes, Holly."

"Wow. I…" Holly is legitimately shocked out of her thigh-length boots. "I never even thought…I never even suspected it of May…or you, for that matter. That's just something that never came up, and I'd like to believe that as teacher and student, we were pretty close. With all the times after school you helped me when I needed it and all the people you've referred me to, I just never thought that it would be much of a problem. And…I've always felt that that was something that you do in private."

"Why, out of shame?" Kelly inquires, almost insulted by that last remark from Holly. "That's only for people that are afraid of themselves, but I'm not. The only reason I kept it secret is because there are some bigoted people in the Academy staff and elsewhere. They don't bother me though. I am living happily as a gay woman, and I have _no_ problem looking myself in the mirror every morning, because I love myself and my girlfriend a great deal. In fact, I plan on proposing to her very soon. If you love yourself, then it shouldn't matter who you're with. You said you always thought that it was something that should be kept private. What did you really mean by that?"

If Holly Samantha Rockwell was not nervous before in her conversation with the professor, then she is definitely nervous right now. Much like May and her embarrassment towards romance, Holly felt the same way about her future encounter with Zoey and all of her prior attractions towards other girls in her life. "I just—could you not tell Conway about this?" Nodding, Holly gets her cue from the younger teen to continue. "I've always been…bi-curious I guess is the best way to put it, and have always wondered what it felt like, even though I've never done any experimenting when I was younger."

'Damn,' Kelly says in her head, 'I didn't think it'd be _this_ easy to get to the bottom of this. Maybe I should pull the trigger right now.'

"Look, Holly," Kelly tells the older woman, "like I told you, there is _nothing_ to be ashamed of if you love yourself, can accept yourself and can look at yourself in the mirror. But I want to talk to you right now about Zoey."

The taller woman gasps, not expecting to hear something like that at all from Kelly. Even though her Academy professor says that she should feel no shame, it's not necessarily something that she wants to talk about at the moment, and she lets Kelly know this. "Professor Cruz-Marin? I'm sorry, but I've said too much already. I've—I've gotta go now. I'm sorry." Holly then runs away from Kelly much to the professor's chagrin.

"Holly?" she calls following her student. "Holly, come back here! You can't keep running when things don't go your way! Talk to me, Holly!" she screams as she chases the scared girl around the Slateport Stadium premises.

* * *

Hitting the button for bottled water on the vending machine just outside of the ladies locker rooms, May gets her one liter bottle of water to quench her thirst that she's had since earlier that morning. After speaking to Kelly about the misdoings of Zoey and Holly towards their boyfriends Kenny and Conway, May asked for a little bit of time alone to think and reflect on everything that she heard from her girlfriend earlier. In a few minutes, she is supposed to be back on the practice field to continue her training.

Until that time, May has decided to just walk around the open area some and enjoy her water while on the impromptu trek. Even after walking for two minutes, May has to admit that the story about Zoey and Holly cheating is very farfetched no matter what Kelly claims to have seen. 'That just sounds so crazy,' May thinks. 'Yeah, Zoey is bisexual, but Conway and Holly have been happy for a long time. I mean, a _very_ long time!'

"May?"

The bandana wearing coordinator turns around and sees Zoey carrying a bottle of a beverage for herself. Walking up to May, Zoey says, "Hey, May. What's up? I would have asked you while training, but…I don't know if I would have upset Kelly or not."

"Oh, don't worry about Kelly," May assures. "She's just really into training me and getting it down pat before the appeal. If she is a bit…snappy, then don't take it personally. She's just ticked off about something really…odd." Half explaining Kelly's anger towards Zoey, May notices off in the distance Kenny and Conway sitting off into the distance near one of the empty stadium canopies.

"Ticked off?" Zoey asks out of confusion. "What could she be ticked off…" the short haired one stops speaking for a second as she hears her phone ring. Checking the outside screen, she sees no number. What she does see is that the phone call is from 'DAD'. "May? Hang on a second. I have to take this." Turning away from her friend from Petalburg, Zoey answers the phone with a, "Hey, daddy. Yeah, things are going well here in Slateport. Yeah, Kenny's doing alright. He's not next to me or anything. He just went off to take a break."

Not really wanting to eavesdrop in what is Zoey's family matter, May instead focuses on both Kenny and Conway off in the distance. Whatever conversation these two teens are sharing, it is clear that the two are really into what they are talking about. May allows only a chuckle to come out of her mouth before she sees Conway flick some of Kenny's hair away from his face.

By no means did May expect to see this happen, and it left her with far more questions than answers. As she watches both Kenny and Conway look at their surroundings, she turns away in the hopes that they are not able to see her. Tempted to turn around and find out what happens next, May does exactly that and immediately regrets the action. What she finds are the two teenage boys from Twinleaf Town and Veilstone City French kissing each other from underneath the concrete canopy of the stadium.

May has to catch her breath when she sees this happening. She can't believe how overt the two are being and with Kenny's girlfriend not that far from them! While Kelly might have thought that she saw Zoey and Holly intertwined, she found it difficult to believe, but there is no way in which the Petalburg native can deny what's in front of her right now. She is speechless as she watches the two of them now start to add some tongue into their smooching. She has to tell Kelly about this and set her straight, so she leaves her friend Zoey without any warning. She is still preoccupied with her phone call to her father.

"Yeah, you can watch the Grand Festival matches tomorrow on Fuji Television," Zoey informs her father. "I think the time is…one o'clock for the opening ceremonies and then at 2:05 they have the first round matches." Turning around, she asks, "Say May, do the matches…" Zoey stops as she does not see May anymore. Wherever she is, she is obviously not here.

Getting back on the phone with her father, Zoey tells him, "Just check your listings and you shouldn't miss a minute. Okay? I'll talk to you later tonight. Give mom my regards. Okay. Bye now." Hanging up the phone, Zoey turns around again and gets a look at her surroundings. There are still plenty of people walking by either getting to the arena to watch the round the clock appeals, kids and their parents buying up all the trinkets and food outside the arena and a couple that has no problem showing their love to one another, even at the risk of being found out.

As Zoey watches these two guys release themselves from their stranglehold on each other, she sees their faces and laughs out loud. She laughs so hard that the two look off into the distance to find Zoey spotting them from afar. While Kenny laughs along with his girlfriend, Conway becomes very red in the face upon being found out. Yes, it's Zoey and yes he knew that she would eventually see this, but that doesn't make it any less embarrassing.

Waving to both boys, she leaves to head back to the practice yard. 'Well,' she thinks, 'it's good to see those two are getting along well.'

* * *

A/N: As the old saying goes, when it rains, it pours. Kelly is convinced that Zoey and Holly are up to no good and May is convinced that it's actually Conway and Kenny. How in the world can this end well? Next chapter is more of the practice and in chapter nineteen, Blaziken and his sparring partner have at it.

Until then, it's been Rave!


	18. Get Into the Game: Part One

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

While still on a planned break and away form May, Kelly puts her plan to get Zoey and Holly to crack into action. Kelly learns how Holly got together with Conway and how she's always been bi-curious at the very least. Kelly decides to approach the subject of Zoey, but Holly immediately shuts down. May is starting to not really believe that anything is going on between Zoey and Holly as she meets up with Zoey during the break. While Zoey is deep into a cell phone conversation with her father, May watches Kenny and Conway off in the distance as they French kiss. May is left speechless and decides to run and tell Kelly what she has seen. She doesn't tell Zoey that she leaves, and when she finishes with her call, Zoey spots Kenny and Conway kissing and laughs up a storm when she realizes who they are.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 18- Get Into the Game: Part One)

* * *

She is sweating while she is running. While one would naturally expect anyone to do this, May is perspiring from more than just running back towards the practice field area. What the coordinator just saw a couple of minutes ago between Kenny and Conway is not something that the eyes can ever be prepared to see.

As she runs in the direction of the practice field, she comes across in her mind the most beautiful face in the world.

"I've been waiting for you, May!" Kelly exclaims tentatively. "I came very close to getting Holly to crack, but suddenly, she shut me down. I tried to run after her, but…she's fast."

As the coordinator in sweatpants runs up to Kelly, the girl from Lilycove can tell that May is winded from running, but at the same time, she can see that May appears to be very on edge. Even after catching her breath from her run, May is still taking deep breaths of the outdoor air.

"May?" Kelly questions. Getting a good look at her would-be fiancée's face, she becomes very concerned for the girl. "May, are you alright? You look paler than a ghost!"

May would consider that logic correct as she feels like she has indeed seen a ghost. "I—Kelly, I…just, I'll be fine, I promise. I just want to get to practice."

Kelly is not convinced that her favorite girl will be fine anytime soon with the way she looks at the moment. "May—look at me, May. Look at me," Kelly pleads of her while adjusting her face so that the girlfriends are now seeing each other eye to eye. "Now what happened? Does this have to do with Zoey? Did you just talk to her?"

"No," May answers. She then turns away from Kelly as she feels the tears about to come down her face. "Kelly, I wish it was just Zoey. I…I don't know how to say this."

"Just say it, May! Whatever it is, I want you to just let it out."

"It's really screwed up, Kelly."

"Just…say it!"

"You said that you saw Zoey and Holly kissing earlier, right?"

"Yeah."

"Well, I have to admit that I didn't really believe you when you told me what you saw, even though I asked you how you planned to go about it solving this. You were very adamant about it, but I still didn't believe you because it sounded so cracked up. I mean those four make up two of the most loving couples that I've ever seen outside of us!"

As May continues, she finds herself in a better position to reveal her news to Kelly. She has since calmed down from her hysteria and can now let Kelly know just what she saw. "First off, I didn't find Zoey as much as Zoey found me and well…I wanted to at least ask Zoey about how she and Holly know each other. It was part of the plan that you talked about. You said that we should make them crack. It wasn't direct or anything and no one would be the wiser. Well, as I was about to ask her, she had this phone call that she took from…I believe it was her father. Off in the distance…I saw Kenny and Conway, and…"

"And?"

"They were kissing each other."

Kelly could not believe it. She is grabbing her head as she believes that her head is starting to hurt. "Kenny…was kissing Conway? Is that what you're trying to tell me, May?"

"I saw it, Kelly, with my own two eyes."

"Oh my God! May, if what you're saying is true, then that means they're just…God! Damn them all! This isn't even something that I can fathom happening, not even in my wildest dreams! Both are cheating on each other with one another's same sex partners. You said that Zoey was there with you?"

"Right there with me, but she didn't see any of this happen."

"Okay, why didn't you say anything to her if that's the case?"

"For one, I was absolutely speechless when I saw it. What could I say at that moment? I didn't want this big kettle of fish to be opened up if Zoey really is cheating on Kenny with Holly. But honestly, Kelly, I don't mean to sound like a broken record, but I was speechless! You have to admit that's a huge shock for anyone!"

Pacing around the entrance of the practice yard, Kelly has to think things over. Overall, there are four people, two same sex affairs, and one huge issue that Kelly addresses to May. "What the hell are we gonna do about this, May? Okay, we now know that they're all cheating. We don't have to walk like we're on a tightrope to figure this out, because we know it's all true. We know what's up." Taking a few more seconds to think about what to do next, Kelly suggests, "We'll give them one chance to be honest with us. We'll talk to them in private and give them one final chance to come clean. If they don't, then we let it out, and…we let them settle their own shit. I think that's for the best and whatever happens—_whatever _happens…happens. I think that's for the best."

May doesn't react much at all to Kelly's newest suggestion with the exception of some light nodding and shaking of the head whenever the specific action called for it. When her girlfriend came up with her final plan for the four, it made a great deal of sense and seemed to be the best fit for everyone involved. "Okay. We have practice, though, so let's do that first."

"Good point," Kelly admits. "Lucy is getting her Skitty from the Battle Pike during break and Ash's Charizard is gonna arrive any minute now. So…let's not even think about those four. That's their problem that they have to deal with when the time comes. Though I've said it time and time again to you, rid your mind of your distractions. Shake a leg, and get your butt back into the game, May. I want to see that aggression out of you that I saw earlier, but I also want to see if we can get that out of your pokemon, as well. Deal?"

"Okay," May answers. She then hugs Kelly for a few seconds before they release the hug and head back into the practice area. While May is walking ahead of her girlfriend, Kelly once again whispers into her best friend's ear, "So, are you ready to get your butt into the game?"

"As ready as I can be, Kelly." What May doesn't expect is for Kelly to propel her into the game in her own special way by giving her girlfriend her second smack on the behind this morning.

Responding to the smack just like when she woke up some hours ago, May listens to Kelly tell her while pointing to her, "_Now_ you're ready," before the Academy professor runs off into the yard to avoid being chased by May.

"Come back here, Kelly!" May screams as they both turn the corner that leads to their plot of land. "One of these days, it's gonna be _your_ ass!"

"Yeah," Kelly calls back to her girlfriend, "but it's not gonna be today!"

While meandering through people and pokemon alike, May chases Kelly all the way back to the practice yard, and as they make it to their designated plot, she does indeed chase Kelly and tackle her down to the ground, essentially pouncing on top of the girl in overalls. May unashamedly does this in front of her and Kelly's parents, her brother, his boyfriend, Brock and Lucy, all of whom laugh at the scene before them knowing just how affectionate the two can be, even in public. Conspicuous by its absence is the quartet of Zoey, Kenny, Conway and Holly.

The tandem shares a kiss on the lips before helping each other get up from off the ground. After setting up some items on her plot of the field, May waits for further instructions from her trainer to begin the second part of her training session. Once a check of the field is done, Kelly blows her whistle to get the gallery's attention once more.

"Okay, everyone!" she begins enthusiastically. "It's time for part two of our open training session! Ash's Charizard hasn't arrived just yet, so we're gonna start with a little…'Showdown of the Skittys'. We'll have Lucy's Skitty go up against May's in a contest style battle for…three minutes, and we'll go from there."

"Why three minutes instead of five, Kelly?" Norman asks out of curiosity.

"Because Skitty is gonna likely be May's appeal pokemon, and I don't want to put too much of a strain on her if I don't need to," Kelly explains. "Basically, I want to see her attack ability against another Skitty and see if we can't raise aggressiveness. So Lucy, if you don't mind…"

"No problem, Kelly," Lucy responds, taking her hands off of Brock and walking to the opposite side of the practice field facing May about thirteen to seventeen meters away from her.

"So to recap once again," Kelly speaks for the gallery, "this battle will be a contest battle." May's trainer stops for a second as she notices both Kenny and Zoey walking to find a seat on the bleachers to watch this battle take place. Shrugging off their tardiness and their mere appearance, Kelly continues, "This is between Pike Queen Lucy of the Battle Frontier and coordinator May Maple of Petalburg City. Both will use their respective Skittys in a battle with a three minute time limit. Is that understood?"

Both Lucy and May nod their heads. The impromptu referee for this bout commands them to call out their pokemon and both call out their respective Skittys.

"Let the battle begin!" Kelly calls out in excitement.

"All right, Skitty," May begins, "let's start out with a tackle!"

While May would rather begin with the basics, Lucy decides to fight her own battle and attempts to systematically break the battle down into a simple science.

"Use fake out, Skitty!" Lucy calls after the call of tackle from May. The result of the two attacks is both Skittys coming together in the center of the practice field, with both none the worse for wear.

"I don't get the rationale behind something like that," Max admits to Brock. "I mean, in a pokemon battle with no time limit, I can understand that there'd be a feeling out process…"

"And there still is one right here and right now, Little Maximus!" Harley chimes in much to the chagrin of his boyfriend, especially after he uses his pet name from years ago. "It's just that the feeling out process is gonna take a lot less time. By doing this, both May and Lucy are trying to find a quick but effective out for each one's pokemon so they can stylishly end this the best way they know how."

"Harley, I couldn't have said it better myself," Brock commends.

"Maybe, but May has TMs and her Skitty is at a very high level," Max debates. "She doesn't need to draw this out…unless…"

"All right, Skitty! Use copycat!" May commands, and the fake out by May's pokemon used in retaliation on Lucy's catches her pokemon off guard long enough for May to make another command. "Now, double slap!" May's command is successful as Lucy's Skitty feels red in the face for more than just embarrassment.

"_Now_ I see why she did that!" Max exclaims to the people around him. "Skitty can only use the move fake out as its very first attack, but there is a loophole to that rule. Obviously, there has to be an advantage to using fake out to fool your opponent, which is probably the reason why Lucy used it, but she neglected to realize that May could do the exact same thing _only_ through using copycat right after Lucy used fake out. And in a contest battle, judges will take off for that each and every time."

Patting him on the back, Harley comments, "That's my little Maximus!" to a response of growling from his much younger boyfriend.

"Man, I wish Glameow could use copycat," Zoey laments to Kenny. "We'd smoke the Orange Islands completion over an open flame and have 'em for lunch!"

"Don't let that get to your head, May," says Lucy, whose confidence has not wavered despite her most recent gaffe. "Skitty, get back into it using sing!"

Pike Queen Lucy's Skitty then literally breaks into song, singing a very soothing melody designed to relax its opponent, leaving it open for attack.

"Skitty, don't fall for it!" May warns. Thinking of a way out of her present situation, she decides on using a technical machine that she had been saving for a rainy day. "Okay Skitty, focus using calm mind!" Though she knows that May just beat her to the punch, Lucy does not show any negative emotion.

"Ooh, damn! That's a smart move!" Zoey comments.

"You're right," Kenny retorts. "By having Skitty focus on something other than the relaxing music coming from its counterpart, there's less of a chance of her falling victim to this modern day Siren."

Looking at her boyfriend with an odd gaze, the tomboy asks Kenny, "When did you get so mythological?"

As the Twinleaf native explains, "Dawn, before her…change, turned me onto Professor Oak's poetry and I've been a fan ever since. You might have heard me drop some quotes here and there."

"Oh, so you're relaxed now? Huh, May?" Lucy questions sounding almost like a goad or a coax. "Well, we have ways of fixing that very quickly. Skitty? Lay off the harmonics for now. It's time to get physical. May, you're not the only one with TMs in this battle. Skitty? Use double team, and let's see how May's pokemon likes it when it's ten against one!"

Noticing that the sun is not directly high in the sky, Brock immediately notices a problem with his girlfriend's plan. "Wait, Lucy! That's not gonna work!"

"Brock," Lucy calls back to her boyfriend, "I've got this! Just relax!"

"But the shadows…"

"Brock! Let me handle this, okay?" Lucy screams back to Brock. As a result of this combined with the fact that he doesn't want any arguments, Brock opts to just sit back down on the bench and watch the remainder of the battle.

Taking in every word that Brock mentioned, including something about shadows, May looks at the numerous Skittys on the playing field that are surrounding her own. Checking for shadows, she sees that only one of them has a shadow; the one directly in front of her own.

Using another TM, May commands, "Skitty, use shock wave, front and center!" In the time in which Lucy was distracted by Brock, May was able to get in the attack that dealt very little in damage to Lucy's pokemon and eliminated all of the other copies from the field. At that point, the damage didn't necessarily matter as much as the fact that Lucy's Skitty was now disoriented, leaving it even more open for attack.

"Okay, Skitty. It's time for the dagger!" May declares. "Use double edge, now!"

Skitty's most powerful attack in a high-charging tackle proved to be extremely effective in battle, as Lucy's Skitty suffered a high amount of impact in a very short period of time, essentially knocking her right out of battle. Kelly watches all of this saying no words until she can clearly see that Lucy's cat pokemon cannot go another second in this battle.

Blowing her whistle, she declares, "Pike Queen Lucy's Skitty is unable to go on! May Maple's Skitty is the winner in a time of…" taking only a second, Kelly checks her watch to see that the battle took, "two minutes and forty-nine seconds!"

The gallery which watched this battle take place stands up and applauds the effort of both coordinator and Frontier Brain. Norman comments, "Fantastic match up! May, you realized that you had to watch for the shadow in double team and you used your TMs to near perfection as well. Lucy is tough; let me assure you of this, and in this one, she wasn't a pushover either, so let's give her credit as well. Wonderful work on both offense and defense for the two of you."

"Thank you, Norman," Lucy humbly answers.

"Oh, dad," May responds embarrassed at the compliments from her father, "stop it. You're gonna make me blush in front of all these people."

As Norman is about to comment and Kelly goes to May to congratulate her, they all feel a giant wisp of wind fly through the practice field. Not that long afterwards, a distinct growl can be heard almost like a sonic boom in the air.

Everyone in attendance looks up to see just what the commotion is, and they watch an orange winged lizard fly though the air with great speed and agility for a larger pokemon. He growls once more. To a few in the audience, it's quite familiar. To others, they are seeing this battle-tested fire pokemon for the very first time.

Kelly looks up and watches as this flyer slows his acceleration and starts to circle the perimeter. She smiles as she says to everyone else in attendance, "It looks like Blaziken's sparring partner is here!"

Seeing Ash's Charizard for the first time, Kenny and Zoey are in awe. They had heard so much about him through Dawn and once or twice through Ash, but had never seen him before until now.

Kenny is impressed and informs Zoey, "It's on…like Donkey Kong."

Bringing her head down and face palming herself, Zoey sarcastically quips, "Some philosopher."

* * *

A/N: Guys, please forgive me! I promise that the next chapter has the Charizard/Blaziken showdown. If I put it in here, this chapter would be far too long, hence the reason for part one. Stay tuned for the battle! I promise it will come very soon!

Until then, it's been Rave! (All heck breaks loose in twenty.)


	19. Get Into the Game: Part Two

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Kelly and May now know that not only is Zoey cheating on Kenny with Holly, but that Conway is cheating on Holly with Kenny. It's a big mess, and thinking it over, Kelly decides to get the four of them together later and give them one chance to come clean before they let the cat out of the bag themselves. That can wait though, as May has her second half of practice to go to. This time, it's a contest battle between Skitty's; the one belonging to May and one that belongs to Pike Queen Lucy. After a smart, technical battle was waged, May came out victorious. Though Holly and Conway were not in the stands watching, Kenny and Zoey came right before the battle began. Immediately following the battle, Ash's Charizard, who will be Blaziken's sparring partner, comes to the practice field to start battle training.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 19- Get Into the Game: Part Two)

* * *

Tissues are to her left and Conway is to her right. For about the past ten minutes, this has been the case with the trainer from Veilstone right at the side of his girlfriend as she has been crying out her frustrations to him.

After being confronted by her ex-professor not that long ago in a discussion that covered how she got together with Conway in the first place, Kelly's homosexuality, keeping feelings bottled up, and being comfortable with yourself, Kelly then confronted her old student on the subject of Zoey. While she was able to get very far into her plan and lead into this moment with Holly, Kelly could not go any further. Holly just wouldn't allow it, saying that she's said too much already and that she has to go.

And she went…all the way into the arms of Conway, who had gone off to spend some more time with Kenny before their activities. Kenny understood that the situation was one that should be handled between boyfriend and girlfriend, so he gave the couple their space and went back to the practice field to find Zoey.

When Conway asked Holly what the matter was, all she could do was blubber back a response in the face of tears flowing down her face with the frequency of a waterfall. It was at this time that Conway decided to lead his girlfriend back to their hotel room so she can calm down and explain what happened to her that has led her to tears.

From rubbing her shoulders to urging her to take deep breaths in and out, Conway has done his absolute best to try and soothe the saddened female trainer. He can tell that Holly's crying fit has just about run its course and he can now go about asking the million-dollar question that has been on his mind for the past twenty minutes.

"So, Holly, I won't press you, but you have to know that if you don't open up to anyone, no one can help you. So what happened?"

Though sniffles, Holly is able to be the unfortunate bearer of bad news by telling Conway, "We've been found out."

"What? Found out?" he asks. "How? By who?"

"Kelly, and I'm pretty sure she's told May by now. Actually, it's more of a case of Kelly finding _me _out. As far as I know, you and Kenny are in the clear. I don't know how she did it, but she kept asking me these questions like 'Would you ever hurt Conway?' and 'Do I have a problem with gays and lesbians?', and something inside of me just caused me to…let her know that I'm bi-curious. You know that they're both lesbians, right?"

"Honestly, yes," Conway admits to great surprise from Holly. "I knew. I…it was a situation when we were at Academy in our class together. though I know I shouldn't have done it, I peeked into an instructor's lounge. There I saw Miss Roxanne and Professor Cruz-Marin talking about having the latter one be transferred to an Academy in Kanto so she could live with May because they were afraid that if word ever got out about it, students wouldn't care for it too much."

"I never even would've guessed," Holly says, now much calmer than even three minutes ago. "People are too quick to judge on a lot of things. Who knows what could've happened? But…what ultimately caused me to snap was Kelly wanting to talk about Zoey. I suppose that the shock of her asking all these questions and leading me to that last one was too much for me to take and I ran. And that's what happened."

"We need to work on you running away all the time," Conway stops.

"Like I need a freaking lecture right now!" Holly snaps.

"Slow down, okay?" he calmly speaks, trying to halt any potential arguments from being sparked. "It's true; otherwise you would've disregarded that comment completely. And to be quite honest, I think that you're crying over nothing. From everything you've just told me, I'm still not entirely convinced that Kelly knows about you swinging."

"I'm pretty sure that she does, Conway," Holly responds. "Why in the world would she ask me about Zoey? Her words were you don't have to be ashamed when I told her that I'm bi-curious, and then she said 'Now let's talk about Zoey'. Coincidence? I really don't think so, Conway."

Pounding the side table drawer of the hotel after she finds that pounding her pillow doesn't allow her to vent her anger enough, Holly digs her face back into the hotel pillow, wet from the numerous tears that have been shed on it. In her condition, Holly could care less if some more were added like they are being added right now as she cries once more into her bed.

Sighing in response to even more tears from his sweetheart, Conway feels for Holly a great deal. While he admits to having a great deal of nerves delving into bisexual swinging for the first time, Kenny has done a great job getting him to relax and be invigorated. Holly is either having second thoughts, Zoey is not doing nearly the job for Holly that Kenny has been doing for Conway, or it could be something else.

"Holly?" Conway asks her once again rubbing her back and shoulders. "Are you sure this is what you want? Because if it's not, we'll talk to Kenny and Zoey, and we can go home and forget this ever happened. But if you want to do this, you have to stop feeling sorry for yourself or feeling as if you're gonna let people down with every little thing that you do. Who knows? This is more than just sex, Holly Rock. You could earn some good friends out of this, but you have to commit to this 100 percent like me. You understand?"

Stopping her most recent crying fit for a second, she listened to all of Conway's words. They did make a lot of sense. "Well…"

"Don't answer yet. I'll give you some time to think about it alone with a clear head, alright? How long do you need?"

"Maybe…half an hour."

"Okay, I'll be back," Conway says, giving a kiss to his girlfriend before he goes to leave his hotel room.

"I love you, Conway," say Holly before her man leaves.

"I love you too, dear," he says back to her with a peace sign as he opens and closes the door, leaving Holly on her own with only her thoughts to keep her company for the next thirty minutes.

* * *

After the excitement that came with many in May's party seeing Ash Ketchum's Charizard for the very first time, it became apparent to everyone there that it was time to get down to business.

Everyone sitting down in the bleachers has their eyes focused on Charizard as he sits in the center of the ring eagerly anticipating his competition, but Brock is also focused on his girlfriend, who snapped at him during her contest battle mere minutes ago. As Brock watches Lucy pat both Kelly and May on the back and come back his way, he anticipates the worst, especially when she walks up to him with her neutral, concentrating face.

"Hey, Luce?" Brock greets. "I'm…sorry for butting into your battle like that."

The Frontier Brain of the Battle Pike does not show any emotion either way to Brock's apology. Brock decides to add to what he just said. "It's just that with the shadows out and everything, double team becomes less confusing to pokemon."

"I know this, Brock," Lucy responds, showing Brock the smile that he fell in love with years ago, "but I concocted this genius plan in my head. Keep in mind that all of this is to build up Skitty's confidence for her appeal this afternoon. I don't want to say that I took a dive, but I did leave the door open a lot of times for May to use her TMs and maneuvers to her advantage. Like I told May and Kelly just now, if Skitty feels good about herself, the appeal will come off looking much better and she'll give it her all."

"So that…blowup was all part of the plan?" Brock asks in clarification.

"Yeah, pretty much. I know how meticulous you can be about battle strategy, and when something is…not the way it probably should be or someone is being careless in battle, you'll be the first to speak out. I didn't think my acting would be that effective, though."

"Had me fooled," Brock admits with a hearty laugh as Lucy joins him on the bench.

Once more, Kelly blows her whistle to alert the crowd, which now has Conway added into the mix. While Kelly explains to them that it's the final practice session for May before her appeal, Kenny asks Conway, "Where's Holly? I know she was quite emotional during the break."

Trying to keep his voice low due to the many people around him, Conway answers, "She thinks that Kelly knows about her. I'm not too sure that that's the case, but that's what she thinks."

"You mean the swinging?" Zoey asks.

"Yeah."

"If that's the case, then we let them know," Zoey concludes. "I doubt it will be that big of a deal and we are amongst understanding friends who know a thing or two about controversies in relationships. The idea behind kissing in public or as close as you can get to public was to get the thrill of being caught and to relax people before it actually happened. It's admittedly hit or miss and luckily, she only got discovered by a concerned friend. Anyone could misconstrue it, so the best people to let in on this would be good friends. But like everything else this weekend, it's your call. If you want to not keep this a secret anymore, we'll tell them. If not, we'll keep hiding."

Blowing her whistle loudly once again, Kelly gets the attention of Kenny, Conway and Zoey, who conversed the entire time that she explained how the sparring session. "Would you three like to share your conversation with the rest of us? I'm sure they'd all be quite interested in what you're saying."

Embarrassed at being singled out by May's trainer like only a ticked off educator can do, the three sullenly apologize to Kelly. Reluctantly, she accepts the apology, and continues, "Now, as I was saying, Charizard's trainer is obviously not here, so we're gonna have to find a replacement. Now who would like to train him for this one battle only?"

With most of the people in attendance knowing the power that this pokemon possesses, the idea of one of them taking control of the beast sounds like a very daunting task. This is likely the reason why no one has raised their hand in the air.

"Now, come on," Kelly says almost pleading. "Someone has to want to do this! Do I have to make this like my classroom and call for a volunteer?" A few seconds pass and still, no one answers the call. Kelly decides to pick someone like fruit from an orchard.

"Okay…dad," Kelly says, much to her father's surprise, "you've trained pokemon before. Would you train Charizard against May and her Blaziken?"

"What? But Kelly that was a very, _very _long time ago!"

"It's like riding a bike dad," she assures him, "once you get back on, it's like you've never forgotten."

"Come on, honey," says Erik's wife, Julia. "I'd kind of like to see you train. I mean, I didn't meet you until after you left training some twenty odd years ago. I have a few tapes, but that's all I've ever seen. I'm…quite curious."

"Yeah, come on!" says Norman, who now gets into the act along with his wife. Slowly but surely, Erik Marin realizes that he's fighting a losing battle as every member of the gallery is now chanting his name and egging him on to accept his daughter's challenge.

"All right. All right!" he concedes, getting up from the bleachers and standing in the spot that Lucy stood in just a few minutes ago.

Kelly takes a few more seconds to make sure that everyone is in place and both pokemon are ready for battle before she blows her whistle once more, announcing to the crowd, "Okay everyone! This is the final practice before this afternoon's appeal. This is a pokemon contest battle between May Maple of Petalburg City and her Blaziken. Her challenger will be…my dad Erik Marin who will stand in as acting trainer for Charizard, a pokemon of Ash Ketchum's. This battle has no time limit. Are there any questions?"

Hearing no sound come out of either one's mouth after a few seconds, Kelly is satisfied, and says to the two, "Then let the battle begin!"

"All right, Blaziken!" May says, grabbing the fully evolved pokemon's attention. "We may have a bit of a disadvantage of flying versus fighting, but don't let that get in the way of the fact that this is a fire fight!"

"How do you think this is gonna play out, Brock?" Max asks his older friend.

"I believe that this will be an interesting battle," Brock admits. "I'm not too sure how much battling Ash's Charizard has done since his time in the Charicific Valley as a bodyguard to Charla. He _could_ be a bit rusty. I know that Kelly was trying her best to coax her dad into training Charizard for this sparring session, but there has to be some rust from being away from it for so long. As an example, soccer players just can't come back to the game from a serious injury right away. They need to practice."

"Blaziken, let's start off with fire punch!" May's command for Blaziken to begin with a fighting fire type move is in an attempt to try and cut off Charizard's advantage in this battle.

"Charizard!" Erik calls, not meaning to be too deliberate in the command, "Uh…jump up in the air to dodge!"

"He's playing against our strengths," May thinks out loud. "Blaziken, keep your fire punch going, but slow down! We'll head Charizard off attacking when he comes down!"

Refusing to waiver from her strategy pays off as Blaziken hits his fire punch at the moment when Charizard comes back down to the ground.

Norman cringes at the gaffe from the father of his daughter's girlfriend and loudly suggests, "You have to time that dodge correctly, Erik, and remember that you're in control of a flyer. Use that to your advantage!"

"Norman, stop backseat battling!" Caroline scolds.

Ignoring the commotion going on in the stands, May decides to stay the course. "All right, Blaziken! We've got him off kilter! Now, let's use slash attack!"

"Charizard! Counter using _air _slash!" Erik commands, realizing that he has to use his strengths in order to win. With a quick flick of his wings, Charizard listens to Erik and moves the air in the direction of the charging Blaziken and pushes the fire pokemon back to the feet of May on the other end of the battlefield.

"Damn it!" she interjects, knowing that air slash would always win in that exchange. Though frustrated at this clear handicap that her pokemon possess against flyers, Blaziken doesn't stay on the ground for long. Her pokemon wants to keep fighting, and that's more than enough to want to keep May in the game as well.

"All right. That might have worked now, Erik, but I do have my ways about me." May then points Blaziken into the direction of Charizard and informs him, "New strategy, Blaziken! Use sky uppercut and aim for Charizard's back!"

"Charizard!" Erik commands, now getting comfortable in the role of trainer, "Counter again using wing attack!"

"Blaziken, evade the wing attack and follow Charizard from behind using brave bird, now!"

Being much faster than Charizard, weighing less than him and having some flying ability, Blaziken can make the mid-air directional change and drive its body into the back of the fire dragon, though the pokemon does take some damage with the hit.

Harley looks at every step of the battle so far in complete awe. "I love May's strategy right now."

Max turns to his much older boyfriend and asks him, "Why? She using no fire attacks whatsoever and just about everything has been fighting, and May knows that Charizard always have an edge against fighting types."

"Yeah," Harley agrees, "but look _where_ she's aiming her fighting attacks. Everything right now is aiming for Charizard's back. Not only does that make it hard as heck to breathe, but if Charizard's back is hurting, that'll make it harder for him to fly."

Max replays the last few moves in his head and notices that this is the case. "Oh! Yeah! But if I could add something, sweetheart?"

"What's that?"

"I noticed it just right now and I can't believe I didn't see it, but May's also aiming for Charizard's wings. Attacking the strengths of pokemon. Man, this is good! If she keeps this up, no one can beat her today or tomorrow!"

"No way, no how, little…"

Pointing to his suitor, Max warns him only one time, "Don't…say it."

"Charizard! Get into the game!" Erik goads as he starts to really get used to battling again after an absence of over twenty years. "You know Blaziken can't beat you, so let's not even pull any more punches!"

"I beg your pardon?" May asks almost insulted by these comments. "I'll have you know that I pull no punches either, Erik! Blaziken, let's show him using flamethrower!"

"All right, Charizard!" Erik commands, noticing that he is gaining the fire dragon's trust, "If that's the case, then we'll fight fire with fire. Show Blaziken _your_ flamethrower, now!"

"This is the ultimate test for any pokemon," Conway speaks. "Going move for move. We'll just see who's the strongest here and now." Zoey and Kenny can only agree with him as they all turn to watch just who's fire will burn the best.

Like an arm wrestling match up, tennis or ping pong, the advantage goes back and forth between the two fully evolved fire types. When it seems like Charizard will engulf Blaziken in flames, Blaziken comes back and moves the point of contact closer to the fire dragon. Back and forth they go with each holding their own for nearly a minute before the combustion of the flames becomes too much to handle and the fire explodes in front of everyone's face.

"Oh, shit!" interjects the referee as the flames spread through their portion of the battlefield.

The trainers, referee and spectators wisely duck and cover in order to avoid getting a face full of flames and wait out any potential danger. About twenty seconds or so of the battle have passed with no activity on the field other than waiting for the smoke to clear. Once the vision on the field is clear, everyone looks up from their current position to find that both Charizard and Blaziken are down…but not out.

"Kelly," Norman says, looking at the scene before him, "I really think that we should call this a draw. Even if they haven't fainted, I don't know how much they can take right now."

Looking at the two fire pokemon, Kelly asks them, "Blaziken? Charizard? Do you two wanna keep going?" While both are clearly weak from what has been a hard fought battle, no one can question their resolve as they both nod in response to Kelly's question. They don't want to stop before their time.

May and Erik find it difficult to want to continue given the powerful attack that just occurred. Despite this, they both choose to continue in battle as both pokemon gingerly get back up on their feet.

"Charizard! Just do the best you can!" Erik calls. "Remember that Blaziken is suffering too. Hang in there and try using heat wave!"

Upon hearing this latest command, May decides to act while Charizard is far too weak to use its flying advantage. "Blaziken, try a blaze kick on Charizard!"

"Charizard, counter by flying up in the air!"

"I think they're throwing caution to the wind at this point," Zoey comments from the bleachers. "This just can't go on that much longer for either one, so why not give it all you've—hey! Holly!"

"Holly?" asks Kelly and May in unison as they look up in the bleachers to indeed see the girl in her late teens.

"Am I too late for the spar?" she comments making her way over to her boyfriend and swinging partners while wearing a pair of sunglasses just like Kenny and Zoey.

Shrugging off the affection that the four show when they hug and talk to each other, May looks up in the sky to find that Blaziken missed her kick on Charizard. "Okay, use sky uppercut!"

As Erik watches Blaziken fly up in the air to catch Charizard, he takes Norman's advice from earlier and waits out calling his next command. 'Wait for it,' Erik thinks. 'Wait for it.' Once Blaziken gets close enough, Erik decides to strike. "All right, Charizard! Use iron tail now!"

Tumbling inside out while in mid air, Charizard comes down on top of Blaziken with his steel tail and deals the final nail in the coffin in this battle as Blaziken faints coming down to the ground.

Blowing her whistle, Kelly announces to the trainers and the crowd, "Blaziken is unable to battle. In a time of six minutes and twenty-three seconds, the winners are Charizard and…my dad, Erik Marin!"

Erik and Charizard receive a healthy amount of applause from the crowd while May calls back Blaziken telling her that she did a great job. Patting the fire dragon on the back Erik says, "You were fantastic, Charizard! Now I see where you get your great reputation!" Right after he gives the pokemon its due praise, Charizard scorches him with a flamethrower, just like he used to do Ash many years ago.

Blowing smoke from his mouth, Erik comments, "Oh yeah. That's the part I hated the most."

"Will you be alright, honey?" Julia asks her husband.

"Yeah. Nothing a little ice can't cure, dear."

Kelly pays no attention to her parents as she immediately goes to May after the battle. "You got distracted, didn't you? I mean, by Holly?"

"Yeah, I did, but I'm not gonna blame Holly for my loss. I had a disadvantage with Blaziken and she held on until the very end. Honestly, it could've gone either way."

"I agree." Kelly blows her whistle one final time to get the group's attention and say, "All right, everyone! That concludes our practice. Everyone go and have fun and remember; May's appeal is at 5:30 p.m. We'll see you then!" Turning to May, she says, "Let's go to the pokemon center for Charizard and Blaziken, and then we can deal with…them. Okay?"

"Okay!" May comments as the two walk hand in hand to the local pokemon center so that everyone's pokemon can be in tip top condition for tomorrow.

* * *

A/N: So there's the much anticipated battle between fire types. Coming up is a much anticipated battle between A-Types. If you didn't get that blurb in the last chapter, the next chapter (twenty) is when all heck breaks loose.

Stay tuned for it, and until then, this has been Rave!


	20. Give the Son of the Devil His Due

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Holly comes to Conway in tears and explains to him that Kelly knows about her swinging. Conway says that it would be best for her to not back out of the session and to let her professor know that this is going on. Holly asks Conway for a minute alone and she gets it. Lucy tells Brock that her yelling fit was part of her plan to get the confidence of May's Skitty up. Kelly asks her father Erik to train Charizard for the battle against May's Blaziken, even though he hasn't been a trainer in over twenty years. The battle was hard fought, and even with a great deal of battle rust from both Erik and Charizard, they were barely able to get the win against May and Blaziken.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 20- Give the Son of the Devil His Due)

* * *

He feels very good after his appeal, and rightfully so. After his two minute long performance with his Roselia, Drew heard the comments from the judges and knew that he would be a lock for tomorrow's battles along with Sandra. The score of forty-nine from Contesta, Suziko and the three Hoenn region Nurse Joys was all the confirmation he needed.

Now Drew is walking back to the backstage area on cloud nine after scoring the highest appeal of the day so far. Shaking the hands of a few fans, signing a couple of autographs and taking pictures are just a few of the things that he does before he goes back though the curtain and exclaims, "Yeah, baby! Everyone take a look at Mister Forty-Nine!" Turning to his girlfriend, he asks her, "Dawn, what did you think about it, huh?"

Looking very cross, Dawn simply says, "It was very good."

"Very good? Girl, I'm all but gonna be in the second round tomorrow to get that Grand Festival trophy! Nothing can stand in my way now!"

"Really?" she asks, almost wanting to laugh at the boy's words. Turning away from her, she calls out the name of "Solidad!" much to the chagrin of Drew.

"What?" he exclaims in total shock. He wants to believe it's not true, but into the scene comes his long time good friend, baby stroller and all. "God, Solidad! I thought we had an agreement!"

"I'm not gonna hide this anymore, Drew, and neither should you. I don't give a shit if you paid me four thousand dollars a month to keep quiet; this is your son…"

"Shut up, Solidad. I know he's my son. I haven't denied him a single day of his life."

"You know what, Drew?" Dawn interjects, "It's not even about the fact that you were fucking this broad behind my back and had a baby or that you haven't denied your baby."

"I beg your, pardon, Dawn?"

"Honestly Solidad, the truth hurts. You knew he was with me the entire time and you still slept with him. You're not entirely innocent in all of this, then or now, and I'll tell you _why_ in just a second, but I have to deal with an emerald haired piece of trash in front of me right now. Drew? I don't know what the hell went through your head when you came up with that…bullshit contract so you could go out and keep living your dreams while Solidad takes care of your son!"

"I don't know what Solidad told you, Dawn," Drew defends, "but I'll have you know that I take good care of him."

"And I'll say it one more time, Drew! That's fine, but you kept this secret! If you had been as open about having a child as you were about cheating in front of my face with Solidad, I probably would've forgiven your sorry ass. But you had to be a stupid son of a bitch about it and hide your child like you're ashamed of Damien."

"You don't know the half of it, all right? She told me she was on the pill!"

"And you took her word?" Dawn asks confused. "You are stupid! Both are you are stupid as hell. Drew, you're stupid for cheating, and Solidad, you're stupid for even agreeing to let him 'have his space' and keep coordinating when he should have been home with his boy."

"Yeah, but those days are over now. I wanted him…"

Dawn turns to Solidad and angrily screams, "Bitch, please shut up! It should have never happened in the first place! It is _not_ about him anymore! It's about his son and only his son! I don't care how much money Drew is giving Damien; it's not a replacement for Drew himself. He's got to be there for him. He needs—you know what? I wanna ask you something, Solidad." Clenching her fists and shutting her eyes, Dawn prepares to ask Solidad what amounts to a very difficult question. "How many times has Drew held Damien in the last three months?"

"All right, Dawn, you're treading on thin ice right now!" Drew informs his girlfriend, almost as if it were a warning.

"I asked _Solidad_," Dawn clarifies. "So, what's the answer?"

Bringing her head down, Solidad knows that the answer will not please Dawn in the least bit. It hasn't pleased her much at all. "On his birth day, which was three months ago. That's it, though. He had all of the people in the hospital sign gag orders so if anyone says something or posts something without his permission, they will go to jail. He…hasn't held him since."

Hearing this story come out of Solidad's mouth makes Dawn absolutely sick to her stomach. No matter how much explaining Drew can do, nothing will convince the coordinator that her boyfriend is taking care of his son. In her mind, he is not. If he's only held the boy one time in his life over the past three months, then he hasn't been taken care of by his father at all. He's played no games of peek-a-boo, not one diaper change or even a lullaby to send him to dream world.

It is one of the saddest things that the girl has ever heard in her sixteen years of life, and out of remorse for the victim of this blind tragedy in the young boy, she cries. She wouldn't dare waste her tears on the wastes of lives in front of her.

Turning to Drew, she honestly asks him, "Who the hell are you? You're not the same person I fell for and gave my body to at age fourteen. Is he gone or is this the real you? You're despicable. Both of you are, but you're worse, Drew. And you claim to take care of your child? Bull-shit! Throwing money at your 'problems' is not the same as taking care of them! No, you may not be denying your child, but you are rejecting your child."

"I don't know what you're talking about, Dawn."

"Like hell you don't!" she screams through her tears. "You're putting your baby off to the side like you're ashamed of him. I've been looking at you, and you haven't even been giving your son any good looks. You didn't even say hello to Damien when he came through here with Solidad. You were only concerned that she was here and your dirty little secret was out."

"Fathers should be proud to know that they are becoming fathers. They should be _especially_ proud and overjoyed to know that they're gonna have a son. They'd happily show people the pictures of their kids, be there for their first school play, T-ball game or give him some ground rules for his first date and tell him how proud you are that there gonna go on their own pokemon journey, but not you. You told the mother of your child to leave coordinating and take fifty thousand dollars a year in a written contract so that no one would be the wiser. Yeah. Solidad told me everything while you were out there."

Watching as Drew finds it hard to look her in the eye; Dawn puts the argument in her own hands by jerking his chin in her direction asking him to his face, "How can you be so fucking fortunate to find some puppet to go along with that nonsense? Did you listen to anything I just said? When you have a child, it's no longer about your life or living out your dreams. _Everything_ goes to your baby first, so that means that if both of you are hungry and there's food for only one, he eats! No exceptions!"

"You wanna follow your dreams? I'm sorry, but you can't anymore! Those days are over. You no longer have that privilege. Not while you have business to take care of with your kid. You missed three months in Damien's life. Three months, and you kept this secret for over a year! He didn't choose to come into this world at all, and if he did, he sure as hell would want better parents…like my mother."

"Mom, bless her," Dawn speaks through even more tears and yet another headache. "She said that you were bad news, but I was a blind and stupid little girl then. I mean you are Andrew Patrick Emerson and you're giving me all this attention! How fortunate could _I_ have been then? I should have known that something was up a long time ago when I found that you were sending love letters to May's house! Yeah, I know about those letters, Drew! It should've been over when I found you giving it to Solidad just like you gave it to me and May saw it. I should not have even gone this far with you had I known what you really are."

"So I ask you one more time," Dawn reiterates, "who in the hell do you think you are?" After not hearing an answer or any word come out of Drew's mouth, she asks one more time, "Who are you, huh? Who the fuck are you?" This time, she shoves Drew in order to coax him into answering her question. "I'm waiting!"

"You better stop!"

"You better answer my question, or can you?" After not hearing anything from him for several seconds, Dawn knows that trying to talk sense into this person is hopeless. "Okay. You may not know who you are, Drew, but fortunately, I can tell you what _we_ are. Done!"

"Come on, you can't be serious."

"But I am! It's over, Drew. I can't do this anymore. This isn't fun anymore. I can't be with you knowing the way you treat your own son and his mother! That makes me even worse than you, which is saying a lot. You have only one shot to give your child all the love in the world, so you can't blow it, Drew! You have to give it your all. I can't…I just can't, okay? If I can only gain you, I'll lose too much. You better grow up and wise up, you and your child's mother, and I mean quick. Goodbye, Drew, and good riddance."

Walking away from the backstage area, Dawn turns around and decides to let the two have a little more of her. "And one more thing for both of you; I don't care if you get along or not. Give Damien a chance. He needs both of his parents and not just money either, Drew! You may never get the chance to experience fatherhood again. Do not blow your one chance, or you will regret it forever! That's it. That's _it_!" And with these words, Dawn leaves the backstage area in tears and leaves the parents of Damien to dwell on everything she has just told them.

* * *

A/N: Strong but true words from Dawn Berlitz. Next chapter has Savannah's appeal and a conversation between future in-laws. Also, Dawn does a moving job.

Until then, it's been Rave!


	21. It's Twelve O'clock Somewhere

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Dawn tells Drew that she knows about him having a child after he does his appeal and scores a forty-nine. Drew had the child after cheating on Dawn with Solidad a year ago. His son, Damien, is three months old. Drew signed a contract with Solidad to keep the child secret. The lying from Drew combined with the lack of time he's spent with his son is too much for Dawn to take, so she breaks up with Drew then and there.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 21- It's Twelve O'clock Somewhere)

* * *

She has never been more ready to leave anywhere than to go from where she is right now. Dawn is in the hotel room that she has been sharing with Drew since Friday afternoon. She's been in here for nearly half an hour, but she can't stay much longer as her conscience will not allow it. While in even more tears, she packs up all of the items in the room, which fortunately amount to very little, and heads for the door of room number 818.

As she reaches for the door handle of the room to leave once and for all, something pulls her back into the room for a moment. She realizes that once she leaves this hotel, she truly leaves Drew. Even though Dawn broke up with the boy some time ago in the backstage area of the stadium, something deep inside of her is telling her to stay for just a minute more and take everything in.

Now reaching into her carry on bag, Dawn rustles through money, identification, makeup and other items of importance to find one wallet-sized photo. It was taken about two months after she and the LaRousse City native got together. At the time, they were at a carnival photo booth and decided to do various poses for each picture. The favorite of Drew's was one in which the two give each other rabbit ears, but Dawn really liked the picture where she and her then boyfriend flashed peace signs at the camera.

What once stood as a small but significant symbol of the bond which these two coordinators shared is now nothing more than a trigger for painful memories. Just looking at him dredged up the times she'd rather forget, and seeing his deceptive smile made things even worse. Dawn could turn away from the picture all she wanted, but his face would still be there each and every time. The face she fell in love with became her own personal Medusa. She knows that looking directly into his eyes turned her into the person that she is now. She became a stone cold individual who turned her back on good friends like Kenny and Zoey, and even caused a great rift between her and her mother that continues to this day.

She meant exactly what she said earlier about losing too much in order to gain Drew, which she had done. The breakup between the two was inevitable and was building for quite some time ever since Drew had his affair with Solidad one year prior. Had she known that Drew fathered a child with his best girl friend from the onset, then there likely would not have been a problem, but knowing that Drew kept this a secret for so long and refused to be an active part of Damien's life tore her apart. Even through her toughest times with her mother, Johanna and Dawn still talk, even though conversations often resulted in yelling and screaming whenever her mother wanted to bring up the subject of Drew.

"I still have a lot to learn," Dawn admits to the room while the air conditioning hums, the water faucet drips and the florescent lighting above flickers in response. He tore him up, so she feels that it's only logical that she return the favor. With the wallet still in her hands, she tears the picture up into many small pieces throwing them onto the carpet, not caring where they land.

Looking at the scene before her in the near spotless hotel room sans the pieces of photograph paper Dawn says "It's a start," before opening the door to room 818 and leaving the hotel room for good. As she shuts the door behind her, the clock in the hotel room turns over to its new time of twelve o'clock.

* * *

As the camera pans over various shots of the excited crowd in Slateport City's stadium, the telecast reaches yet another hour of showcasing Saturday's appeals.

"It's twelve o'clock, ladies and gentlemen," the host of this telecast states. The camera cuts to a desk with a male anchor sitting next to a plasma screen television while inside. "This is hour number eight of appeals for the Hoenn region Grand Festival. I'm your host Stephen Craig, and we thank you for inviting us into your homes, wherever you may be. For the next six hours, we will have three new faces calling the action, so it is my pleasure to turn the action over to three people who know that this is the time when we separate the pokemon from the poke boys...and girls. Here's Gavin Harte, 1992 Hoenn Grand Festival champion Melinda Feliciana and the Professor of the Hoenn region, Solomon Birch. Guys?"

"Let me just say," Melinda begins, "you were going well trying to avoid sexism until you called us _guys_, and clearly…"

"I'll buy you lunch next time, I promise. Please forgive me," Stephen humorously atones while holding up both of his hands in a form of surrender.

"We'll talk. Right now, though, we have business to take care of in the afternoon appeals. Remember, there are a total of 314 coordinators that have come here to fill only sixteen spots for tomorrow's second round. So far, we've had over 160 appeals with Drew Emerson, Sandra Van Hollen, Brianna Nolan and others scoring marks as high as forty-nine, but don't forget that there are still more notable names out there to fill the sixteen seats at this all important tournament."

"That's exactly correct, Melinda," Gavin agrees. "Don't forget top-five coordinator Dawn Berlitz, who has been the subject of some controversy in just the last few hours. If you did not hear the news, she checked into Slateport City General Hospital early this morning complaining of headaches. She was diagnosed with a concussion and released at approximately eight a.m. She admits to not remembering how she suffered the concussion, and while there was great concern about her health, the doctors have given her a clean bill of health for competing. Dawn was scheduled to have her appeal at eight a.m., but due to her hospitalization, officials will give her the final appeal of the evening. And that's the big story heading into appeals."

"Indeed, the many fans of pokemon coordinating are gonna want to stay up late to see if Dawn Berlitz can make it into round two," Professor Birch says, "and we'll be here to cover it all, but for now, we'd like to talk about one of the true feel good stories of this year's Hoenn Grand Festival. As Gavin mentioned, Sandra Van Hollen has already completed her appeal with a score of forty-eight, placing her third amongst coordinators so far. In her three years as a pokemon coordinator, Sandra has had the love and support of one of the top veterans of the 1990s in her mother Savannah Van Hollen, who will do her appeal in just a moment."

"Standing ringside to tell us more about this is former Hoenn Grand Festival champion and field reporter for all twenty-four hours of this event, Robert Weis. Robert?"

After a delay of a second or so, the hardest working individual at this year's Grand Festival says, "Thank you, professor, and good afternoon everyone. Family traditions in pokemon training and coordinating date back as far as the sport itself. Savannah Van Hollen, like most ten-year old girls, had a dream of one day becoming a world class coordinator and eventually a Grand Festival champion. She made quite the impact in her day, but motherhood called Savannah and she answered leaving her dreams behind without regret. From then on, her daughter Sandra became her everything and her dream of being the best seemed to die out like an old light bulb. But dreams have a funny way about them just like life itself."

"One day, her daughter at age seven watched a tape of her mom on the television screen and asked her 'Say mom, you we're really good then. Why aren't you out there coordinating now?' Well folks, one thing led to another, and she has come back along with her daughter to give her dream another fighting chance. Keeping the memory of Sandra's late father in their minds, they will work to be the first immediate relatives in over fifteen years to make it past the first round of _any_ Grand Festival. Savannah's appeal…starts right now. Let's go to public address announcer Lillian Meridian for the call."

From the restaurant at the Slateport Milton Hotel, Erik Marin looks and listens to the story of Savannah Van Hollen in awe while drinking his sparkling water with lime. He has to say out loud, "Wow. That's a really great story if both of them can get make it through."

"Well if both of them get in, where does that leave me?"

Turning around to find out who asked him that question, Erik finds his future daughter-in-law May Maple.

"May!" Erik happily greets. Patting the chair next to him, he says, "Come on! Come on! Have a seat and the watch the appeal with me."

She chooses not to argue and instead sits down with Erik to watch Savannah. She calls out her Ivysaur and in a period of two minutes, she puts on a dazzling kaleidoscope show using the various grass pokemon attacks. She begins with razor leaf, bullet seed, petal dance, and leaf storm in that order. These first four attacks work in near-perfect harmony spreading throughout the arena for the first minute and a half of Savannah's appeal, and then with a call of vine whip to tear every leaf, petal and seed into a fine potpourri, warranting a high amount of cheers from the crowd and the commendation of both Erik and May in the restaurant.

"That was _real _good," May has to admit as she watches the five judges in attendance. To pass the time with Erik, she orders a raspberry flavored Coca-Cola while waiting for the results to be announced. "Say, Erik. I know I didn't say anything at the time 'cause I was with Kelly, but that was a great battle."

"Thanks, May."

"You…you kicked ass, man! Seriously, I've heard things about your training days from Kelly, Paul and Reiji and knew you weren't a pushover, but…I never knew. I never knew! You could give _anyone_ a run for their money today! Certainly gave me one," she concludes, while taking her first sip of her soda.

"I might have been…pretty good during the late 70s and early 80s," Erik explains, "but nobody could even touch my twin brother Sascha Marin. We were both on the cover of 'Pokemon Digest' our first year and while his career flourished and he went on to win championship after championship, I saw more of the business aspect of it all and found my true calling. I left training at age…either fourteen or fifteen and managed Sascha through the rest of his career. He really loved to battle, and as you know, so do my two nephews in Veilstone."

"Hey look," May alerts, pointing Erik to the screen, "they're about to announce Savannah's score." As both of them watch the television, they see Contesta's score first. He awards the coordinator an eight. Respectable, but Savannah will need more. Going to Suziko, she gets her wish. He gives her remarkable performance a perfect ten. So do two of the three Nurse Joys with the other giving Savannah a nine.

"Wow, a forty-eight!" Erik exclaims as the other people in the restaurant applaud the older coordinator's effort. "Just like her daughter!"

May smiles at the great segue that Kelly's father has given her. "Speaking of daughters, Erik, you've heard it…probably hundreds of times over the years. You know how much I love Kelly."

"Oh, yeah. I do. Whether you've been Kelly's best friend or her girlfriend, you've been very good for my daughter. The rest of the Marin family loves you. You're…all that a father could ask for his girl."

As Erik takes a couple more sips of his sparkling water, May gets to her point by explaining to the older male, "I want to know if I have your permission to ask for her hand in marriage."

The shock of May's plans cause Erik to choke on his sparkling water. Asking Erik to raise his arms only helps a little bit before one of the other patrons hands May a fresh glass of water for Erik to drink. Once his coughing fit ends, Erik decides to get to the bottom of this revelation. "Marry Kelly? When did—when did this come about?"

"I had actually thought about it for a while. Kelly gave me quite a shock last night, though. I thought she was gonna ask to marry me then and there. That would've foiled my plan to propose during the Grand Festival after party, win, lose or draw." Erik breathes somewhat of a sigh of relief knowing that the two planned to propose at different times, though he remains very much on edge. "Luckily, she stopped short of popping the question. I gave her a red herring, basically, saying that I'd be ready to marry her in a 'few years', but I'm ready right now if she is. I have my ring and everything, I've thought ahead and now I just want to know, may I marry your daughter?"

What a mess. Erik would say that great minds think alike, but he felt that that would tip May off to Kelly's plan. Of course, Erik has no problem with May's proposal and he tells her, "Absolutely. I just…want to tell my wife about this and let her know what you want to do, but I'm all but certain she'll say yes. In fact, I'm gonna go ask her right now. Sit tight and I promise I'll be right back. Okay?"

"No problem, Erik, and thank you," May responds. "This really means the world to me."

As she watches Erik quickly leave to go consult his wife concerning the marriage proposal that May plans to give to Kelly, she can't help but think how everything has come together for this weekend.

It'll be up to her to keep everything doing in the right direction, distractions be damned.

* * *

A/N: Ooh, what will happen? Savannah is all but in, Dawn is very much out and May is halfway there. Again, what will happen next? Next chapter has the first appearance of (most) everyone's favorite trainer from Pallet Town and a talk between cousins.

Until next time, it's been Rave!


	22. Misunderstandings Mightily Misconstrued

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Dawn takes her stuff out of the hotel room and leaves after she tears up what was her favorite photo of her and Drew. Savannah does her appeal and scores a twenty-eight, the same score that her daughter made a couple of hours beforehand. Erik Marin watches the appeal with May from the hotel restaurant where May asks Erik's permission for Kelly's hand in marriage. It shocks Erik to the point where he chokes on his water, but he ends up saying yes. He leaves May to ask his wife Julia if it's okay.

NOTE: Completely forgot to mention in the last chapter, but if you didn't already get it, Kelly, Paul and Reiji are all first cousins.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 22- Misunderstandings Mightily Misconstrued)

* * *

"So let me get this straight," Julia says to her husband as she summarizes everything he has just told her while sitting together in their hotel room. "Our daughter is planning on proposing to May after the Grand Festival and has been pushing her to win so they can have that moment on stage. Now you come to me to inform me that May has been planning on proposing to Kelly for a while and would like to propose to her during the Grand Festival after party? Is that right, Erik?"

"May wanted our permission first," Erik clarifies, "and I said yes. Of course you can marry my daughter."

"But Erik…"

"I know, dear. I know. Kelly's plans over the past few months."

"What do we do? If she wants my permission, then she has it without question, but Erik…our girl has been working on this for so long. Everything's in place for both of them to get the ball rolling in their long life together. Could we honestly tell either of them to not propose? First off, that would be lying because we want this for them as much as they do. Second of all, if we told them to stop, who knows what they'd suspect?"

"Good point," Erik says. "Man, this is hard. And you know something else? We can't tell them that either of them is proposing, and though one of the reasons is because we'd violate their trust, there's something else. Kelly has said time and time again…that she wants to reduce the number of distractions that May has going into the Grand Festival. When you are engaged, every thought is going towards your fiancée and your marriage and spending the rest of your life with your partner. That's a huge distraction, and given the times that each one wants to do this, they're very smart to avoid it."

"But someone's gonna have their big plans ruined."

"Hey, honey," Erik says, "May's waiting for me downstairs. I'll tell her you said yes and just leave it at that, okay?"

Did Julia really have a choice? "Okay. We…I just…I wish we could do something, and not risk each proposal being let out too early."

"Me too, dear. Gotta run. We'll talk later," he says, and Erik does run…all the way back to the restaurant area of the hotel to let May know the good news…for her, at least.

* * *

A ring of the house phone is enough to grab the attention of anyone close enough to hear it. For Delia Ketchum, the grab is a very welcome one as she hasn't heard the phone ring all day. After the second ring, Delia picks up the phone and gives the person on the other end the traditional greeting of hello.

"Ms. Ketchum? This is Kelly Cruz-Marin," she greets while alone in her hotel in front of a desk. While on her cell phone headset, Kelly's hands are left free to jot down notes on a pen and paper located on the desk. "How are you?"

"Hey, Kelly!" she responds, happy to hear from the Academy professor once again. "Is everything going well in Slateport with May?"

"As well as things can be. She has her appeal at 5:30 this afternoon, and we just had our spar with your son's Charizard. I wanted to know if I could speak with him about some more strategy. Is he there?"

Looking from her present position to the living room and the television inside, Delia sees Ash on the couch with Paul right next to them as they both study the ongoing appeals. "Yeah, just one second."

Putting her right hand to the phone receiver and covering it, Delia calls out to her son, saying, "Ash! Telephone!"

Getting up from the couch without saying anything in response, the world class trainer seems to drag his feet as he really doesn't want to answer the telephone at the moment. He had to get up from a very good appeal that was ongoing for a phone call? 'This had better be good,' he thinks as he takes the receiver from his mom, who tells him that Kelly is on the phone.

"Kelly, what's up?" Ash speaks in monotone, "I'm watching appeals with Paul right now. There's this one with this long-haired chick named Jessminder that's going pretty well."

"Ash, your mom has DVR on her television," Kelly reminds the trainer. "You can just rewind it back from the beginning. I just called to give you the rundown on what happened with the Blaziken-Charizard spar earlier this morning. Charizard won, and my dad trained him."

"Erik trained him?" Thinking it over, he comes to the conclusion, "Wow! Maybe that's why he won. Charizard might not have been doing much battling over the years, but…you know how strong a trainer your dad was in his heyday. I don't know. That might have been…lopsided."

"But here's the great thing," Kelly interjects, "it wasn't! The battle was more than six minutes long and though Charizard might have won, it was pretty damn close. One…or two attacks that would've gone Blaziken's way, and I might be telling you a different story. May might have won had she kept to her strategy. She kept a lot of her initial attacks aimed at Charizard's back and his wings so that he'd have trouble flying and couldn't use those attacks to his advantage. After a big flamethrower test of strength resulted in both pokemon being weakened significantly, she suddenly switched her strategy and decided to just go for the kill. I guess she felt with both pokemon so weak, one big attack would seal the deal."

"Unfortunately, Charizard hadn't been weakened enough, apparently. I think that if she stuck with her game plan for a little longer, she might have won. What do you think, Ash?"

"You're right, Kelly," he answers as his curiosity at how the battle went down has been peaked. "May can't be lulled into any false sense of security because of a type strength or weakness. If she has a strategy that works like trying to cut down Charizard's wings, then she has to keep at it until she's sure that it is working. Then again, if it doesn't work, she has to do something else. Otherwise, if she held on that long with a pokemon that has the raw power of Charizard and the talent of a trainer like Paul's uncle, she should be fine."

"Speaking of which, could I speak to my cousin? I wanna ask him a few things."

"One second," he says before calling out to Paul and telling him that Kelly is on the phone. Unlike Ash before him, Paul immediately jumps up from his spot on the couch and takes the receiver from his fellow trainer.

Thanking Ash for holding the phone as he runs back to the couch, Paul greets the person on the other end of the line saying, "Nata, how's it going?"

"Not too bad, Paulie," Kelly responds. "So you and Ash are preparing for the Grand Festival party tomorrow, right?"

"That's right. Our guest list keeps growing, too. Misty will now be bringing her sisters, Casey and Tracey. We've also got Erica and Joshua coming, Richie, Reggie and Gary and if he's not busy, Professor Oak. As you know, Ash just put in a huge plasma screen in the living room, and his mom is cooking, which is always a plus."

"I tell you," the Lilycove native says, "If I couldn't be here in Slateport, I'd definitely be there. It all sounds really good. But I wanted to talk to you about a couple of things. One is…remember when May put her Blaziken against your Honchkrow and she won? What was it that you said was the reason for that win?"

"Well, Honchkrow might have an advantage over Blaziken because he's a flying type, Nata," Paul explains to his younger cousin, "but it's really not that much at all. They're about equal in terms of flying ability, so that battle wasn't the best showcase for either's flying abilities or lack thereof. Why do you ask?"

"I was just on the phone with Ash, as you know. We just had the spar between his Charizard and Blaziken. May lost, but it wasn't by much. Charizard was being trained by my dad."

"Uncle Erik trained Charizard?"

"Yep. He used a lot of flying moves after remembering the advantages flyers posses over fighters. Ash said that Blaziken could have won had May stuck to her strategy of aiming all of her attacks at Charizard's wings and back. Do you agree with him?"

"That sounds right. It's probably the best way for any fighter to combat a flyer. Anything else on your mind, Nata?"

"Yeah, there is something else I wanted to ask you. It's pretty crazy situation. You see, I know this…couple; a boy and a girl and both of them are bisexual. They told me and May that they are in an open relationship, and they are honest with each other. The only problem is that the next day, I caught the girl kissing one of my old female students and I also find out that May caught the boy kissing another boy. Should I—or rather, _we,_ do something about that?"

"You said that they have an open relationship, right?"

"That's right."

"Nata, I don't really see why that's much of a problem if they're in an open relationship, unless…" putting the pieces of the story together, Paul comes up with a conclusion. He asks her, "Kelly, do you even _know_ what an open relationship is?"

"Yeah, both partners are open and honest towards each…"

"No. No, Nata," Paul interrupts, trying to hold back his laughter. 'She really doesn't know. Well, she's about to find out,' he thinks before finally letting Kelly in on the big secret by telling her, "An open relationship means that each partner allows the other one to have a relationship outside of that one. The two people you're talking about are probably allowing each other to cheat with the same sex. There are different types of open relationships, but all of them allow for one or both partners to go outside of their union."

Thinking about it for a second, Kelly weighs everything that she's seen. Holly did seem quite nervous around Zoey before they kissed. Kenny and Zoey did tell her and May that they were in an open relationship, and what are the odds that Zoey and Holly would have an affair at the same time that Kenny and Conway are, as well?

Kelly realizes that she's made a huge mistake and then some. "Oh shit, Paulie! God, how come I didn't see it? Neither of them is cheating on each other. They're just swinging…and doing a pretty pathetic job of hiding it, too."

"You're starting to sound like me, Nata."

"And I never told anyone but May that I saw these two people kiss," Kelly adds, ignoring her cousin's latest remark. "I treated them pretty badly for a bit. I gotta go straighten this out with them, Paul. They might think I hate them for no reason. Thanks. It was nice talking to you."

"You know, for someone who's planning on becoming a doctor later this year, you can be pretty absent-minded at times."

"Shut up, smartass," Kelly responds with a sarcastic laugh immediately following. "Good bye. Go snog with Ash later and tell Uncle Sascha I said hello."

"Will do, Nata. Take care. We're all rooting you and May on. Bye," he says, hanging up the phone and leaving Kelly to think about the revelation that some of her good friends are swingers.

Leaning her head back while sitting in her chair, she thinks out loud, "I can't believe I didn't see it, and I put poor Holly through all of that lecturing for nothing! She must think that I think she's the worst person in the world. I gotta apologize and clear the air for this afternoon."

Sitting back up and looking at the three or four lines of notes she took in the advice that Ash and Paul gave along with the loose definition of an 'open relationship', Kelly decides to open her phone and scroll down to the speed dial option. Pressing the button for the first name on the list, Kelly awaits for a response from the other end of the line.

Hearing what is in her mind the most beautiful voice in the world say 'Hello', Kelly calls back saying, "May, we've made a big mistake."

* * *

A/N: The nickname 'Nata' is short for one of Kelly's middle names, Natalie. It's also a reference to Kelly's Japanese name 'Kanata'.

In the next chapter, the quartet of Kenny, Conway, Zoey and Holly come together to trade dos and don'ts lists and talk some more about their encounters to take place tonight.

Until next time, this has been Rave!


	23. Swinging: Party of Four

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Erik and Julia Marin know that both May and Kelly plan to propose to each other and they don't know what to do about it. Kelly talks to Ash and Paul about the sparring session with Charizard and Blaziken. They both say that if May has a smart strategy, she should stick with it to the very end, and if that doesn't work, then she should consider a new plan. Kelly asks her cousin Paul about open relationships, and he clears them up for her. Kelly decides to then call May informing her of their grave mistake.

NOTE: This is where the 'M' rating really comes into play. There is mention of sexual acts and positions, but nothing is done in graphic detail.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 23- Swinging: Party of Four)

* * *

Now in what was once an area filled with activities all around, there are only a few people now that the lunch crowd has all but departed. Walking to the table that they were told to go to a few hours after sparring practice, Conway and Holly walk hand in hand across the dining hall to a table off in a corner far away from whoever else remains.

Seeing the red head and the brunette together at the table, Holly seems to walk even quicker to the more experienced couple as she is anticipating their evening session now more than ever. At one point, she was dragging Conway with her to the table, which warranted a passing chuckle from the sitting Zoey and Kenny before they stifled themselves and put on their serious faces for what is about to take place.

"Hey, guys!" Holly greets with Conway adding a hello himself. The younger pair asks for both of them to have a seat, which they do without any apprehension.

Taking a business like approach to everything that they do in swinging, Kenny begins the get together by saying, "First of all, I'd like to thank you both for coming to this important meeting and sticking with this. I realize at times it can be hard, but the best advice that I can give you both is that I promise that if you cooperate, we'll have a lot of fun. Conway mentioned to me that you, Holly, were distraught because you thought that…Kelly discovered you. I just want to know are you okay now, and have you spoken to Kelly at any time after she confronted you?"

"I'm fine, and no. I haven't spoken to Kelly since then. After a talk with Conway, I realized that if I don't go through with this, the question will still be there. I'll still be wondering if I missed out on something new, fun and interesting or not. If Kelly keeps asking me questions this weekend, then I'll just let her know what I'm doing. She'll understand. She always has understood."

"Good to have you back on board," Zoey says, patting Holly on her left shoulder. "Now onto more pressing matters. You were both asked to come up with a list of dos and don'ts for our 'activities' tonight. You were encouraged to do research on the various positions, and the like if you had to. So, do you two have your lists?"

Zoey and Kenny watch as their counterparts at the other end of the table pull out folded sheets of paper and place them on the table. "Very good. You came prepared. Right now, I would like for all of us to take our lists and switch them so Holly and Conway, you will be looking at our lists and we will be looking at yours. Feel free to look at one another's lists if you like and be as discrete as possible if you see something that might appear to be shocking or you don't agree with. Also keep in mind that there is always room for negotiation."

"Now on the count of three," Kenny continues as he and Zoey take out their own lists, "We'll switch lists. One…two…three," and on three, Conway skates his list across the table so that it meets the coordinator's welcome hands. The tomboy opts to toss her list to Holly like a Frisbee, Kenny reaches across the table and places his list next to the bespectacled one, and the most formal looking of the four simply hands her list off to Zoey.

As Kenny and Zoey look at each list, they make mental notes in their heads like seasoned veterans as they nod at each position that Conway and Holly are either curious about or will not enter into the equation. Having done this many times over the last year or so, very few things are foreign to this pair. For them, it is business as usual.

For the item across the table, however, things are not sailing nearly as smoothly as each would have preferred. They didn't want to say it for fear of their reactions, but as the 'virgin' pair collaborates with each other to look at the list and find that the dos far outweigh the don'ts, they know that they are not dealing with a couple that's shy about their sex life in the least bit.

'So Kenny is a _uke_, huh?' thinks Conway. It was very clear to him that he would be expected to deliver the goods to Kenny tonight, as his partner likes the bottom a lot. Among the things on the do list are sixty-nine, oral, anal, spanking, licking, biting, fingering, facials, intercourse, outercourse and masturbation, just to name a few. Most of these acts have the word 'bottom' in parenthesis next to the act. The only notable don'ts for Kenny are oral stimulation of the 'exit', golden shower, and the use of a dildo.

When Holly gets a good look at the list before her, she feels some relief. The reason for this is because just about everything on her list is the same as the things that she's seeing on Zoey's list. Looking at Kenny's list, it appears that her sexual partner to be drives a much harder line on her personal preferences than the super freak sitting next to her.

Each couple takes about three minutes looking at the lists before Kenny breaks the silence to ask Conway, "What's your objection to…anal?"

"I've never done it before. Holly won't let me."

"Aw, Holly, you're no fun," Zoey teases.

"Hey, it's an exit, not an entrance," she defends.

"I still don't understand why you…object to it. I mean, you put it on the don'ts side."

"I don't know, Kenny. I just…I always thought that with what I've read that it would hurt a lot and," conceding to some cowardice that he's harbored about this, Conway admits, "I'm a wimp. I thought, you know, if we _are_ gonna have sex, just like you said, then I didn't want it to hurt. That's all. I just didn't want it to hurt."

Nodding in response to these admitted caveats felt by the person in front of him, Kenny knows the solution. "Conway, I'm not gonna beat around the bush. It _does_ hurt, quite a bit in fact. Given this fact, for newbies, we have some solutions, but it's gonna come at a cost."

"Because you two are far less experienced," Zoey states, piggybacking on what her partner just said, "you will have to buy things for us to make the whole process go much smoother, no pun intended. First and foremost, you two _must_ buy protection, that's condoms for males and females. For Conway, if you just pick up a lubricant and bear with Kenny for a minute or two of pain, you should be fine. And if you didn't remember, this is a drug free session. No Viagra or any of its bullshit knock offs will be permitted during sex. No street drugs, and it's a given; no alcohol."

Seeing that Conway was about to give an answer or some sort of response, Zoey cuts him off to add, "Hold that thought and think about it for a second. There are a few more things that you'll have to buy. For one, you will have to buy both of us dinner."

"What?" Conway asks.

"As the facilitators for this weekend," Kenny explains, "you have to show us your appreciation for setting this entire session up. It's all part of the initiation."

"Kenny's right," Holly interjects. Turning to Conway, she reminds her boyfriend, "Remember when we got paired up with them in the 'Switch Hitter's Society' in the first place? The group leader there said that you have to show the veterans their respect for being in the club for so long." Referring to the couple before them, Holly continues, "They were once in our position buying a more experienced couple their dinner, buying condoms and the like. They know about going to have sex with these...near perfect strangers later that night, and we have to respect that."

"Thanks, Holly," Kenny compliments, "I couldn't have said it better myself. The newbies always have to buy the veterans their dinner and you must buy us whatever we want. I'm gonna…kind of break the rules for you two, though, for the simple fact that I eat like a horse." Stopping, he pulls out a bill from his pocket, handing it to Conway, explaining, "That should about cover our meals. It wouldn't be fair for you to spend so much on everything. You can just fit the bill for the protection and give me the change for the food whenever."

"Kenny," Conway begins, fighting the urge to laugh "this is one hundred dollars! Just how much are you eating tonight?"

"A lot," replies the younger couple in unison.

"Sex drains you," Zoey adds. "You gotta have energy. We'll give you a list of what we want before May does her appeal, alright?"

"Okay. And, Kenny?"

"Yeah, Conway?"

"You said that we could negotiate, right?"

"Yes."

"Well…I'm _thinking_ about trying it; both giving and receiving, that is. I just want to know…I can pull out of this whenever I want, is that right?"

"Yeah," Kenny says to the point of near boredom. "If I didn't allow you to do that, I would be raping you, and I would never do that."

"Same goes for you, Holly," Zoey addendums. "Though our lists are about the same, if there is anything that you don't want to do, you don't have to do it. I am responsible for you, after all."

"I know this," Holly replies matter-of-factly.

"Good," answers the male Sinnoh coordinator. "Now if there isn't anything else, we'll adjourn the meeting." Waiting a few seconds for any objections, Kenny continues, "Very well. The next thing…"

"There you four are!" a voice exclaims. Assuming that they are the only group of four in the entire dining hall, Holly, Kenny, Conway and Zoey all turn in the direction of the yelling voice to find May and Kelly running over to their table off in the corner.

As the four girls and two boys in their late teens say their hellos, May explains to them, "We've been looking everywhere for you two! We knocked on your room doors I don't know how many times, and…we have something to say to both of you."

"We owe you four an apology," Kelly says.

The four trainers and coordinators sitting down at the table are somewhat confused at hearing this from Kelly. A couple of them openly question why the two feel as if they owe all of them an apology.

"We're sorry for not asking you all sooner about the fact that you were swinging," May clarifies. "We had no idea what an open relationship was when Kenny and Zoey told us that they were in one. Luckily, Kelly called one of her cousins and he really cleared things up for us. Although I'm not really for swinging, if you guys can accept me being gay, then I see no reason why I can't accept you two being open with other people."

While May is apologizing to the group, Kelly goes up to Holly and personally says to her, "I'm especially sorry for the way I acted towards you, Holly. I misjudged you and…I was very insensitive towards your thoughts. That's not me at all, but when I see something that doesn't look right or is just a little bit off, it's in my nature to want to fix that. I just wanted to make sure that nobody got hurt. I had to make sure that you weren't doing something you would regret or you were breaking up a good thing that Kenny and Zoey share."

"Speaking of Zoey," Kelly continues while looking at the tomboy, "I'm sorry for snapping at you this morning during practice. That was wrong of me, but…I guess I had to find some way to vent my anger towards you, and that was the only thing I could think of without telling everyone and embarrassing you all."

"Well, Kelly," Holly begins, "I…I was just scared, but not anymore. I didn't know if people would understand or not. That's why I kept this so secret, or at least tried."

"Apology accepted?"

"Yeah," she answers, and Holly and Kelly come together in a big hug which they hold onto for over fifteen seconds. Each one whispers to each other; Holly while in tears tells her ex-professor that she's sorry that she could not be more open with her while Kelly tells her former star student that she has absolutely nothing to be sorry for and that she's just living her life. She also says that she can be a real jerk at times and is sorry for pushing her into trying to confess. After a while, they finally let go with each one joining their respective partners.

"Are we all okay here?" Kenny inquires, "because before you two came to our table, I was about to suggest that we could all go see the sights after this? I thought what better way to let loose than that."

"Really?" May asks. "Wow! That sounds really good. Can we go, Kelly?"

"Absolutely not."

"What?"

"I hope you haven't forgotten that you have a meeting with Lucy in her hotel room in a few minutes, May."

"Aw!"

"Stop sulking," Kelly says in an almost teasing manner. "It's very unbecoming."

May scoffs before saying, "But Kelly, I've got my appeal down pat. Do we really have to talk more about this? I've spent weeks on this thing!"

"Another meeting can't hurt. Just get through this, do your appeal, and we'll have the rest of the night to see whatever sites you want. Lest we forget, you _do _have a job to do. If you don't get past this first round, all of your work will be for naught."

'Damn, I hate it when she's right, even though I've got this. I know I've got this down pat,' May ponders. "Okay, Kelly. Let's get this over with."

"That's the spirit…I guess," her girlfriend responds. Turning to the quartet in front of her, Kelly leaves them, saying, "All right, you guys have fun, and again, we're sorry that we didn't say something earlier."

"Hey," Zoey retorts, "we are somewhat responsible. We thought you knew what an open relationship was, but…we really shouldn't assume lest we make asses of you and me."

"True," May speaks before turning to Kelly, despondently saying, "All right. Let's go see the brain," and the two walk off, feeling better about their four peers, even though they think that what they are doing is kind of weird.

It doesn't matter, though. After all, the two are used to the feeling by now.

* * *

A/N: Next chapter has a worldwide revelation and an individual's realization. Yes, it involves Drew, so stay tuned!

Until next time, it's been Rave!


	24. Baby is Out of the Corner

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

The quartet of Kenny, Zoey, Conway and Holly sit down and trade their dos and don'ts lists for their swinging later that night. Some ground rules are laid, outlawing any drugs and alcohol and requiring the older but less experienced couple of Conway and Holly to buy Kenny and Zoey their dinner and get them protection. Kelly and May spot the foursome and they apologize for the way they've been acting. Kelly is especially regretful towards Holly, but everyone accepts the apologies. While the four swingers are going to see the sights, Kelly and May have a meeting with Lucy to attend. The purpose of the meeting is to break down her afternoon appeal.

NOTE: There may be mention of 'edited language' in this chapter, but that's only for people watching as if they saw this tape delayed on television. I don't edit language in fan fiction.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 24- Baby is Out of the Corner)

* * *

Waiting for the cue from the director, the host of the Hoenn Grand Festival telecast cannot wait to read to the entire world the news that he just heard from the press room. As he watches for a bright red light on the top of the camera in front of him, he wonders just what kind of impact this will have in the coordinating scene, the tabloids and every single newscast out there that gives pokemon coordinating more than just a second thought.

The light is on, and so is the host on screen.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we welcome you back to live coverage of the Hoenn Grand Festival first round. I'm Stephen Craig. While you were watching appeals, a development took place in the press room. If you remember, Drew Emerson had his appeal well over four hours ago. He initially declined requests to do a press interview after scoring a forty-nine out of a possible fifty in his appeal. After a while, Drew conceded to the wishes of the press and decided to go inside the press room and speak. What occurred next was shocking to say the very least. You will notice in this tape-delayed interview that former Kanto Grand Festival champion Solidad O'Brennan, who has been on leave of absence for the past twelve months, is seated next to Drew…along with a young child. Let's watch as Drew talks about more than just his prospects for tomorrow's battles. Please be advised that this interview may contain edited language and other situations that some may find offensive."

The tape cuts to a shot of Drew bringing the press microphone closer to his mouth before speaking into it and explaining to the media, "All right. I'm sure all of you have quite a few questions to ask me. For now, though, I'll only entertain questions on my appeal. We'll cover…whatever else you want later. Let's begin."

Several flashbulbs pop as journalists and reporters ask Drew if they could be first to have their question asked. Watching from a hotel room are the group of Lucy, Brock, Kelly, May, Norman and Max gathered in front of the television watching as Drew makes a decision as to which one of the reporters will go first.

"Why isn't he with Dawn?" asks Max almost sarcastically.

Although the question posed by Max was more than likely rhetorical, May answers it, saying, "I don't care, and I don't see why the heck we have to see this. He got a forty-nine with Roselia. I expected that. What the hell can I learn from seeing this?"

Lucy unexpectedly shushes May and informs her, "I wanna listen to this."

On the screen, everyone watches as Drew points out into the crowd, saying, "Okay. You first."

"Drew," this male reporter begins, "Landon Bell, Slateport Examiner. What is your plan going into tomorrow's second round?"

Bringing his head down as a sign of disapproval of the question, Drew sarcastically answers, "You do realize that other coordinators are likely gonna watch this, right?" This response warrants some laughter from the rest of the reporters in attendance. "It's simple, really. Win. That…would be a great plan, wouldn't it?"

"Would you care to be more specific?"

"How about…win with chutzpah or pizzazz?" Yet another humorous answer from the coordinator. Don't try telling him that there's no such thing as a stupid question. "Next question?"

"Yes, Drew. I want to know what you think about your girlfriend Dawn Berlitz getting the last appeal…"

Holding up his hand in defiance, Drew interrupts this reporter, reminding her, "Please do not tell me you forgot what I just said. Only questions—right now, I am only taking questions on my appeal or the second round. Now, if you have one, ask me, otherwise I'll move on."

"What's your reason for choosing Roselia as your appeal pokemon?"

"Experience is the primary reason. Roselia is my pokemon that really knows the spotlight and relishes being in the spotlight more than my others do. My others really shine in the heat of battle. Next?"

"Drew, you've seen some of the scores of your peers in this contest. Members of the Van Hollen mother-daughter duo have scored a forty-eight, Jessminder Mentrovia scored a forty-seven and so did Brianna Nolan. My question to you is do you see anyone in this field as a potential threat to you going to the top this weekend?"

"Nobody really stands in my way if I let them…" while Drew says this to the press, May shakes her head while family and friends continue to look on inside of Lucy and Brock's hotel room.

"What an arrogant…damn him!"

"May!" Norman interjects at his daughter's profanity.

"No dad," she rebuts. "You of all people should be right behind me on this! You know what he did to me. He doesn't deserve any sympathy from me or anyone else right now."

"You know, in a strange way," Kelly adds, "I really think you should be thankful to Drew. It's screwed up, but if he didn't cheat on you, you wouldn't have been open to pursue me, and now we're together, May."

No matter how crazy it does indeed sound, May has to admit that Kelly makes a good point. The break up with Drew made her a stronger person and gave her the strength to admit her feelings to her current girlfriend and be honest to those who love her the most. "Well, I guess you have a point, Kelly. It's not like I'll ever admit any of this to him, though. I'd have to be on crack…"

"Okay," Lucy speaks, "there are still people that want to see this, thank you. We can debate sympathetic figures throughout history some other time. This won't wait, though."

While there is quite the debate going on in Lucy's hotel room, Drew continues speaking to the media. All of the questions posed to him about his appeal and his strategy for the weekend were designed to prepare him for the great revelation he is about to present to the world. He has to admit that even after a few minutes of questioning from the third degree; he's in a much better position to give everyone the news.

"Okay. I think I've kept this to myself long enough. I know you out there are probably wondering why I'm not with Dawn, why Solidad is here and why does she have this baby carriage. Well, this baby's name is Damien Donovan O'Brennan…my son with Solidad." As expected, this news was met with a great deal of murmuring from the press along with even more flashing of photography.

After a half a minute, the commotion inside of the press room subsides. The shock of the announcement does not come with any questions, much to the surprise of both Drew and Solidad. If you consider the magnitude of one of the most popular coordinators in the Hoenn region announcing that he has a child at the age of seventeen, anyone would understand the high amount of shock value that this news would bring.

"He is three months old," Drew adds, silencing whatever conversation or commotion remained inside of the room, "and he's the reason why Solidad has been out for so long. Any questions?"

"Yes, how does Dawn factor into this?" one of the female reporters ask Drew, almost screaming so the coordinator will have to pay attention to what she's asking. "Does she know about this at all?"

"Yes, she knows, and she didn't take it that well at all."

"Are you still with Dawn?" she asks as a follow up question.

"You're gonna have to ask her. I refuse to speak for Dawn. Next question."

"Uh, Drew. Just…I'm curious to know…if you were with Dawn this entire time, how did this baby come about?"

"I'm sorry, but isn't that something that your mom and dad are supposed to explain to you when you come of age? Yes, I cheated on Dawn with Solidad and the result is my son here. For those wondering, I've never denied my son. I have given him nothing but the…"

"Why don't you give these people the truth for once, Drew?" a voice sounds, interrupting Drew at the interview table. Looking out in the crowd to find the voice, Drew again hears this woman speak, "Why don't you tell the truth for once in your goddamn life?"

"Who is that? Who's saying that?"

"Your ex-girlfriend, Drew," says Dawn, who walks through the crowd of reporters and comes face to face with the sitting teen. His expression doesn't change sans a scrunching of his face once Dawn escapes from the crowd. "Why don't you tell them everything?" she asks as if she were one of the reporters in attendance.

"They don't need to know everything."

"You're a god-damn liar, Drew, because I'm sure that they'd like to know just how well you've been treating your son the first three months of his life," Dawn answers back to her ex. "Why don't you tell them about your qualifications as father of the year? How about the fact that you paid Solidad four thousand dollars a month forcing her to sit home while you went on like nothing was wrong? What about the fact that I caught you and her in the act?"

"Why do you believe that they have to know everything?"

"Because it's your burden to bear, Drew! And I want to know something else; why is this bitch next to you staying so quiet while you try and play off that your some kind of good person and a mere victim of circumstance?"

"Hey," Solidad remarks, "I resent being called that."

"Your word means shit to me right now!" Dawn exclaims to the older woman next to Drew. "Both of you mean shit to me right now! The only thing I care about is this child, but at the same time, the truth…needs to be told."

Turning around to face the cameras and media, Dawn reveals to the press, "The Drew Emerson that you all know is a lie. He's not a good person at all. He cheated on May Maple, he cheated on me, and if Solidad thinks that going along with his wishes and having his baby will get her closer to him, she'll get a rude awakening when she finds that Drew will eventually cheat on her, too. This has to eventually stop. Either we all have to wizen up to these games, or we'll all end up fooled."

Feeling a hand touch her left shoulder, Dawn turns around to her Drew whisper into his ear, "Stop embarrassing me in front of all these people. I've told them everything they need to know."

"Oh, so you now know the feeling of being emasculated for yourself, huh?"

"Fuck you," he whispers back to Dawn.

"No. Fuck you!" she yells so all of the reporters, people in the room and people watching the interview at home can hear. "If you had shown any _real_ compassion for your wrongdoings, I might have forgiven you, but you kept stringing me on like I was your own personal puppet. How do you live with yourself knowing how many hearts you've broken?"

An honest question from Dawn puts the older male front and center once again. He makes the honest comment to the world, "It's my life."

"What the?" Dawn asks before slapping Drew across his face. After the impact, Dawn asks him, "You really don't get it, do you? This isn't about your mother fucking life anymore! This is about that child! Your boy! Your son! Do you understand?"

Drew doesn't answer her; rather he reaches across the interview table, and grabs Dawn by the shoulders, shaking her and asking her, "What's the big idea slapping me like that?" Dawn won't stand for anymore and punches him in the face while cameras and media look on in shock and awe. Not that long after the punch, Dawn lunges for Drew, tackling him to the ground and punching him from behind the table. Solidad decides to leave the area with her baby, correctly thinking that the situation is far too dangerous for them both.

While behind the table, a microphone falls to the ground near Drew and Dawn, giving the world a sample of Dawn's feelings towards Drew. While the press and those lucky individuals watching on pay-per-view or subscription channels listen to unedited and unadulterated feelings along with punches being landed, most everyone else would hear several bleeps, including everyone in Lucy's hotel room.

Few words are exchanged between the six people inside of the hotel room at the moment when the press room fight broke out. The only thing of note in the room was the glances and glazes as people young and old looked in shock at the scene before them. It became apparent that the number one romance in all of coordinating had gone straight down the toilet before their very eyes. What more could anyone say?

"Wow!" Lucy interjects. As she watches the television some more, the film cuts back to the Grand Festival host, who explains to the audience that both Drew and Dawn have been arrested for their part in the press room melee, which took place less than fifteen minutes ago. He wraps up the piece by saying that both are expected to be released very soon. Lucy has seen all that she wanted see, and a lot more that she didn't expect.

Not even knowing where to start from here, she decides to turn off the television and get to the real reason for her meeting with May and the others. She asks her peers, "Why don't we all…just get started?"

Everyone thinks it's a good idea and they gather around a table placed in the room. Once more, they don't say much, instead opting to nod their head and walk to one of the chairs to begin their meeting concerning May's appeal.

Shock value is enough to make the most talkative beings on Earth quieter than mice.

* * *

A/N: Okay, folks. For those that don't know, this story is going pretty well. But it has caused me to neglect some other projects of mine, so the next chapter (twenty-five) will be the chapter in which it will go on hiatus for eight weeks or so. The next chapter has the meeting and maybe another surprise or two to follow.

Until then, this has been Rave!


	25. Elements in Play and At Work

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

A prerecorded press room interview is where Drew reveals to the world that he is the father of a baby named Damien. May and the others in Lucy and Brock's hotel room look on. May doesn't understand why she is seeing this. As they watch, Drew is interrupted by Dawn, who vents her frustrations while the cameras watch. The back and forth comes to a head when Drew shakes Dawn in front of the cameras. Dawn will have none of it and punches Drew, tackling him as well. May and her audience watches the scene in shock and awe. After the confrontation, it is reported that both Drew and Dawn have been arrested.

NOTE: After this chapter, the story will go on hiatus for about six to eight weeks.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 25- Elements in Play and At Work)

* * *

Like war room strategists past and present, the six people sitting around the circular table in Lucy and Brock's hotel room realize that it does no solider any good to rush into battle without a plan. Looking at May intently and not wavering in their faces, her girlfriend, brother, father and two of her good friends watch her as she describes in great detail what she will do for her appeal in a few hours time.

"Okay," May begins. "I've always felt that the best appeals tell stories through the attacks." Using a toy Skitty model to help her in her demonstration, May places the look alike in the center of the table. "I'm going to use the many elements in Skitty's appeal. Using TMs, she is capable of doing attacks like blizzard, ice beam, sunny day, and a few others."

"I have all of the TMs that I'm gonna need for this appeal, so that base is covered. Skitty will start in the center of the ring. I plan on beginning with…rain dance. That will bring in the water element and seeing as we've gotten a lot of power out of Skitty over the past few weeks; it should be enough to drench the field for a while. From there, we cool things down and then some with Skitty's blizzard attack."

"That will do more than just cool things down," Max comments. "Sounds nice so far, May, but where does this all lead?"

"I'm gonna lead up to a finale where we include thunder into the mix and just have Skitty create this powerful storm which all culminates into this…big flash. From there, the rain will keep going until I have Skitty do sunny day. From there, the rain will clear up and the appeal will end with this giant circular rainbow in the sky. I've been practicing this during bright days with Skitty, and we've got it down to a near simple science. So what do you guys think?"

As the five listened to May throughout her description of her appeal, they are now ready to form their own conclusions as to just how effective an appeal like May's will be.

Lucy, who is sitting to the immediate left of May tells her, "I think that you're about to get a fifty. That's really good and a very effective use of TMs. My only problem is…what you're talking about is a lot to fit into just two minutes."

"I understand, and like I said, I've been working with Skitty for several weeks so that we could get this appeal down pat."

"They have been. Trust me on this one, Lucy," Kelly replies. Sitting to the immediate right of May, she asks everyone else at the table, "Does anyone else have some other words of advice that can help us out for later?"

"Yeah, I do," Brock chimes in. "May, you talk about how this appeal should be large. You said large enough to drench the field, and if that's the case, everyone should see it, but…I still have some concerns. The field is very large. If you want everyone to see this, I think it would be a good idea to have Skitty…do all of these attacks while she's…what's the word I'm looking for?"

"Take your time, dear," Lucy assures her beau.

Brock does so, and after a few minutes of thinking about what would make Skitty's appeal that much better, he comes up with the solution to, "Have Skitty…spinning while she attacks. Do you know what I'm trying to say?"

In an attempt to explain his strategy, Brock spins the toy Skitty on the center of the table while keeping the model on its legs. He says to May, "Keep in mind that you will be judged on more than just the moves you use and how they are used in your appeal. If the crowd loves what you are doing, then they will show it with their cheers. If Skitty is spinning at 360 degrees while attacking, it's a given that everyone will see what she's doing. That can influence the five judges to give you a higher score especially if the crowd is really into it, and if everyone can see this great appeal you have planned, that will make the cheers that much louder. No judge can ignore that."

While her family and friends agree with Brock's logic, May takes a more analytical approach to her older friend's words. "That all sounds good, Brock, but there are a couple of issues that I have with that plan; what do we do to keep Skitty spinning that long and can she hold that pace for two minutes? That can seem like an eternity when you're up there for so long."

"Well, we haven't been working on cardiovascular conditioning for nothing, May," Kelly reminds her trainee. "I think that Skitty can do it, and…I think I know how to make her 'spin' for two minutes." Whispering into the ear of her girlfriend while the rest of the members of the roundtable discussion look on, Kelly explains her brilliant plan to May as far as how to get Skitty to gracefully turn while at the same time delivering powerful attacks. As the coordinator listens to her best friend, she likes her plan more and more.

"Okay, that does make sense," May admits. "Even if we are going to be teasing Skitty by doing it, I like it."

"Anyone else have some more advice for my trainee?"

After Kelly asks the other people at the table for their advice, Norman chimes in with some of his words of wisdom. He says to his daughter, "I like the appeal, but my biggest gripe would probably be that…that's a very action-packed appeal. I wonder if it's…too much at once."

"I wouldn't worry too much about that, dad. The judges will give Skitty points for liveliness and activity. And one thing that we've been working on is pacing."

Norman finds it very hard to argue with her daughter's logic. "Okay. It's your call. Good luck, May."

"Anything else?" Kelly asks once more. After a couple of seconds of not hearing anything, she says, "Very well. Meeting adjourned. Thanks for all of your help."

Standing up from her seat, Kelly prompts her girlfriend by telling her, "Come on, May. Your appeal is in about an hour. Let's go meet with your mom and get ready to do this."

"Okay, dear," May replies before getting up. As she and Kelly leave, they thank Lucy and Brock for letting them have their meeting in their hotel room and May tells her father and brother that she'll see them soon.

Outside of the hotel room, the girlfriends are quickly pacing themselves as they are on a somewhat tight schedule. Their mothers Caroline and Julia are already at the Slateport Stadium awaiting both of them, but more specifically awaiting May, who has to get dressed in her appeal-appropriate attire.

While making the walk to the elevators, May asks Kelly about something that has been on her mind since she called her not that long ago. "Say Kelly. I know we've cleared up everything with Zoey, Kenny and them, but I'm curious. Everything that happened earlier with them all stems back to...her, right?"

"I thought that they wouldn't be honest, but given that you mentioned it, yes. That's what was happening in my head at the time. I just don't like cheating and I don't like people who lie about cheating, either. Yeah, she had a ton to do with that."

Expecting Kelly to clear up her reasoning behind sneaking to find out the activities of her four friends, May listens intently to her girlfriend only to hear nothing but their own footsteps as they make their way to the elevator.

"So," begins the coordinator in sweatpants, "this is what it has come to and it all led back to your first girlfriend and what happened there right after you came out to your folks?"

"I guess, but it's not just that. It's…it's really a big thing that was nothing, May."

"Kelly, come on! You know that I know better than that. Damn it, we don't do this! We don't keep secrets from each other! What the hell are you talking about when you say that this is nothing? Are you trying to say that your life is nothing? That your emotions are nothing?"

"It's embarrassing."

"I don't care, Kelly!" she exclaims as the two enter an empty elevator and press the button for the ground floor of the hotel. As the door to the elevator closes and the pair makes their descent from floor ten to floor one, May informs Kelly while looking her dead in her eyes, "Look, I wouldn't want us to enter a commitment if we kept secrets between each other even if they are embarrassing. So what happened?"

Bringing her head down for a second, Kelly has to admit that May is right. No matter how crazy her past was, she did learn a great deal from it. "Well, you know the story that goes with my first girlfriend. Am I right?"

"Of course."

"Well, what you don't know is that my first girlfriend…accused me of cheating several times along with her. This was about a year before you and I came together and I was about thirteen years old at the time. It shocked me to no end because I would never do anything like that, but it did more than just throw me off. She caused a rift between me and my parents! They actually believed that bitch over me, their own daughter!"

"Why did you stay with her if she kept making these false accusations? That's the part that I don't get. Why not kick her out then and there?"

"Well, first off, that's my parent's call, not mine. Because I loved her…or at least I thought I did. I come to find out that the only reason she said all of that was because_ she_ was cheating on _me_ the entire time. She only said that so no one would suspect her wrongdoings. I hated her for the longest time. That's why I'm so against cheating, May. Not only because it happened to me, but because I was wrongfully accused by someone who I cared for deeply. She lied right to my face. She nearly cost me the good relationship I have with my mom and dad, and to this very day, she carries on with her boyfriend like she's done absolutely nothing wrong. That's why I didn't want to ask Zoey or Holly point blank; because I didn't want to be lied to again. It happened to me personally and I'll be damned if it's gonna happen to me or anyone else I care for again."

As the tandem hears the elevator ring, they find that they have come to a stop two floors before reaching the ground floor. May makes the comment after digesting all of Kelly's information, "That makes a lot of sense. Maybe I shouldn't say this, but…I'm pretty certain that she is at this Grand Festival. Is that a problem?"

While two gentlemen enter the elevator car, Kelly considers the idea of her ex-girlfriend being at the Grand Festival and though she would prefer not to see her, she is more indifferent than anything else to the idea. She gives May a response of 'Whatever' to play off her ex's significance. No more words are exchanged between the two as the elevator reaches ground level.

* * *

Once his sister and her girlfriend leave, Max says, "I just remembered. I have to meet up with Harley before the appeal. I'll see you all in a bit," and no sooner than May and Kelly leave, Max exits the hotel room en route to the room he shares with his boyfriend. He leaves his father to talk with Brock about Forrest's progress as a gym leader in Pewter City.

Unlike May, Max doesn't have far to go to reach his room. He only has to walk down two flights of stairs to floor number eight. From there, May's little brother still has quite a ways to go to reach his hotel room. He walks the entire distance of the hallway and then makes a right turn to even more rooms before he gets to his; the final hotel on the right.

Reaching into his pockets, Max pulls out his key card, but before he can unlock the door to his room, a hand unexpectedly touches his shoulder. Turning around and expecting the worst, Max is instead given what amounts to a look in the mirror.

"Oh! Hey, Conway. What's up?"

"Not too much. I'm about to join my party and root your sister on in her appeal."

"Thanks," Max replies, "and thanks for all of your support for me and my family over the years. My family and I really appreciate it."

"Oh, no problem, man," Conway assures. "Like I said to you when my brother first introduced us, any friend of Seth's is a friend of mine."

"Yeah, about that."

"What do you mean, 'about that'?"

"Well, if he's such a good friend, why was he so hard on me a year ago? I competed against him in the Kanto League Championships quarterfinals and lost to him. I tried to ask him what he though about losing to me, and he just left saying that he should have worked harder and that I battled well. You remember this, Conway? Now normally, we get along very well, but that day, he'd barely speak to me."

"Well, Max, it's the league championships. They only happen once a year in each of the regions. You know the accolades and the recognition and the…money that goes to whoever wins a league title?"

Thinking about it for a second, Conway's words make more sense. Having not seen both of the Ericsson brothers in about a year's time didn't allow the younger siblings to talk about their classic six-on-six battle from that championship. With Conway here with him now in Hoenn to support May and Seth back in Sinnoh to compete in that league, perhaps some confusion about that moment in time can be cleared up for them both. "Yeah. I guess you make a good point."

"Look, I admit that my younger brother can be very intense at times, but it's only because he wants to be the best, just like us, and he just has a different way of going about it. He kinda reminds me of Paul before he came out."

"Isn't it funny how that happened?" Max questions. "The entire time we thought he was just a mean guy. I guess you can't really judge a book by its look."

"Hell, I knew him when he wasn't an asshole. Something…changed him. I don't know if it was the death of his mom when he was five or what, but…he wasn't always like that. He was a really sweet boy." A few seconds of dead time passes, and Conway gets a good look at Max. "Shoot. I just noticed it," the older male in glasses comments while chuckling. "We're wearing the exact same shirt!"

Getting a look at Conway and then taking a look at his own shirt, Max realizes it himself. "Well, what do you know? You're right!"

"Why'd you change shirts?" he asks the Hoenn trainer out of curiosity.

This question catches Max off guard. For one, he did not expect to hear it and second of all, the real reason is very crazy in its nature. "Well, you see…um…Harley had…I guess…spilled something on the first shirt and..." It is at this point where Max begins to go on the defensive asking his older counterpart, "Why the hell do you want to know so badly, huh? If you're so damn curious, I was giving my boyfriend head and he came on my old shirt. There! I said it! Are you happy Connie?" Max bluntness causes Conway to open his mouth wider than Max did earlier in the day.

While Conway is in his trance, Max unlocks the door to his hotel room and informs the eighteen year old, "Quit being so goddamn noisy, all right?" and he shuts the door behind him.

Noticing something amiss with what Max just told him, Conway frees himself from his trance and knocks on Harley and Max's room. He asks the younger teen, "Hey Max. Max, didn't you mean to say 'Quit being so goddamn _nosy_?'"

Hearing this question from the other side of the door, Max opens the door, saying nothing to Conway in the process. All he did was hold the middle finger of his right hand directly in front of the bespectacled one's face before shutting the door once more.

"What the fuck is going on here?" the swinging teen questions before he makes the long walk to the elevators and the stadium.

* * *

A/N: And that concludes chapter twenty-five, putting this story on official hiatus! It will return in about six to eight weeks. Look for it then!

Until then, it's been Rave!


	26. Promise Thing

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Kelly and May sit down with Brock, Lucy, Max and Norman to talk about May's appeal, which starts in about an hour. After getting everyone's approval for her 'weather effects' appeal, she and Kelly leave to go to the arena. It is there that they talk more about Kelly's strong dislike for infidelity. Kelly explains that her girlfriend before she got together with May cheated on her and caused a rift that nearly cost Kelly her family. Max leaves to see Harley in their room before seeing May's appeal. He encounters Conway in the hallway, and after Conway (in Max's mind) sticks his nose where it doesn't belong, he goes into his room leaving the older trainer confused as to just what occurred between them.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 26- Promise Thing)

* * *

She would not think of saying a word to the person sitting across from her. She even finds it a difficult chore to look him in the face. Though she takes full responsibility for finding herself in a holding cell of Slateport City's Central Booking station, Dawn only did it because her ex-boyfriend made absolutely no sense earlier while he spoke at the podium about his son.

He told her and the rest of the world that it's his life and even after being discovered by Dawn and telling the world about his three-month old son, nothing seemed to change for Drew. Even after being embarrassed on worldwide television and getting beaten up by his ex, Drew appears to have everything back to normal in his life. Sure, Solidad spoke about things changing and _maybe_ she meant it by the mere fact that she came out of nowhere with her and Drew's son to make a point, but whatever she planned to do did not appear to have any real effect on Dawn's ex.

"You know?" The jaded coordinator had to look up from her seat. The only two people in the holding cell are Drew and Dawn. Given this fact, he would have to be the one who apparently had the blatant audacity to want to start a conversation with her after everything they've went through.

Dawn shot Drew a glaze that would have enough power to melt metal. It was her hope that he would not complete his thought at that moment and just leave her alone. For that moment, hopes were unfortunately dashed.

"I really have given it some thought…"

"Drew, I don't even wanna hear it. I don't want to hear it, bottom line. You haven't learned anything from what I said. Not a goddamn thing. It's useless. You're useless, and I don't need to hear anymore garbage." Dawn sniffles as she pauses in her speech. The most important part of this sad story still lingers in her head. She's spoken to and yelled at Drew about it and at the very least, tried to beat it into him. Nothing worked and in her mind, one more mention shouldn't hurt. One more mention should not hurt, rather if she puts her feelings into her words, one more mention has to help. "I just…can't understand why you'd do that to your own son! I don't know if you realize these two things, Drew, but here's a bit of a refresher: telling the world that you have a son is still not enough, and whatever you do _now_ will affect Damien _later_. Do you want that boy to end up hating you because daddy didn't spend enough time with him?"

"Not this again."

"Yes, this again!" Dawn says. "I wouldn't be crying over this if I didn't care about that kid! We were together while you had Damien and I guess I feel this sort of connection to him. I'll tell you this much, though; I think I have a much better connection with him than his father and I'm not even his mother!"

"Emerson?" calls one of the officers from central booking. As Drew responds back to him, he opens the electronic lock to the jail cell door and says, "You're free to go. Berlitz, we're still working to finalize payment of your bail."

"Okay," she responds with her head down. She doesn't even look up to see Drew walk out of the cell, but she does hear the officer say "Raoul Contesta would like to meet with you before the end of the day, Drew. He said it was of the utmost importance."

"He said all of that?"

"Indeed. You know where to find him, right? He's at the stadium and he said that you could speak with him during one of the breaks."

"Very well," Drew speaks to the officer as he leads him to the main lobby where Solidad is waiting with Damien in the stroller. After filling out a couple of forums and making a few signatures for central booking, Drew is officially free to leave the station.

While walking with Solidad, Drew doesn't say much of anything, which perturbs the mother of his child to no end. "Well, do you have anything to say to me or Damien, Drew?"

Slowly turning his head in the direction of his past lover, Drew, much to the surprise of Solidad, does not have an answer for her but he does have a question. "Why did you come here?"

For Solidad, Drew might as well have asked her for the answer to two plus two. "Our son needs his dad, Drew. It's that simple. Dawn…pretty much said everything that was on my mind when I decided to come here and set you straight. It's not fair for me to have to take care of _our_ child and it's not fair to Damien that his father can buy his way out of his responsibility and think that that will cut it. I'm not gonna stand for it anymore, Drew. You're gonna get into your son's life even if it hurts, and that's a promise." Drew says nothing back in response to Solidad's statements, only nodding his head while it remains down looking at the sidewalk before him downtrodden.

* * *

Back in Central Booking's holding cell, Dawn continues to think and recollect on everything that has taken place over the weekend and throughout her now terminated relationship with Drew. She knows that she did the right thing by ending her romance. The decision ultimately came down to attitude for her. Dawn's ex-boyfriend's attitude concerning himself and his family was downright frightening. If he treated his own son like he was property under contract, then there is no telling what he would do to her. She had to leave for her own good.

Now that it seems that there is no hope in convincing Drew that his life has to change and that he has to get into his son's life, Dawn is questioning things with a great deal of scrutiny and wonder. Going through the entire process of making an appeal and attempting to qualify for tomorrow's round of the Grand Festival just did not seem as important to her as it did before learning about her ex's many wrongdoings. In the constant struggle that she found herself in with the Hoenn region coordinator, she became someone she wasn't and lost hold of who she truly is. She became rude, vulgar, arrogant and even bigoted all in the name of a relationship gone sour. None of it added up to a hill of beans because the so-called match made in heaven went straight to hell in a hand basket. Pondering all of this, she has to admit that all of this thinking is giving her quite the headache, which confused her as she thought that she was over her pains this morning.

"Berlitz?" an officer said, pushing Dawn out of her thoughts for the moment. Turning over to the door of the cell, Dawn sees the officer open the door and tell her, "You're free to go."

"Thank you," she replies, getting up from her seat on the cell bench and walking out to follow the officer to the lobby of Slateport City's central booking station.

"You know, you're a very lucky girl, Dawn," the officer speaks. "Me and the others here at the station are wrapped up in Grand Festival fever just like everyone else. We saw the interview from the live feed, and we thought for sure that you would either be disqualified, have charges pressed against you by Drew or both." Looking to Dawn while they make their way to the front desk, he adds, "Fortunately for you, neither one of those things happened; although I will say that Raoul Contesta wants to see you sometime between now and your appeal."

"Is that all?"

"No, that's not quite all," he adds. "Don't forget that the person who posted your bail wants to speak to you as well."

Dawn deeply sighs before she rhetorically asks, "Why am I not surprised?" She asks this because using her one phone call; Dawn called her mother Johanna Berlitz asking her to wire one thousand dollars to Slateport City so that she could be released from jail. Given that her only phone call while in custody had a small time limit, Johanna could not get out all of the things that she wanted to say to her daughter then and there. Dawn's mother let her know that she would talk to her the minute law enforcement released her. At that moment, she will get everything out into the open to her only child.

Once being led to the phone, the officer dials a code to get out of the station's extension. He then hands the phone off to Dawn telling her to take her time as she hears rings from the other end of the line.

Three rings pass and the voice on the other end of the line asking, "Hello?" Dawn immediately identifies this voice as her mother's.

"Hi mom," she neutrally replies.

"Hello again, Dawn. Now you know what I want to talk to you about, right?"

"Yes, ma'am. Look, I'm really sorry about how I acted mom. I—I was just so…incensed with Drew when I found out he fathered a child while we were together. But like I told him…and the rest of the world, if he showed _any_ initiative at all in taking care of Damien, that's the name of his son…things might have been different. Now, it's not even worth speculating. It's done and I finished it in front of an audience of over a billion people to boot." After a bit of a chuckle, Dawn says to her mother, "I don't think I'll ever live that down."

"No you won't, and you know that you'll have to face some punishment for it."

"I know I shouldn't have cursed like that, no matter how mad I was. I suppose…a lot of this has been building up inside of me for so many years that I just had to have some sort of release. I know it might sound like an excuse, but I guess I just wanted to prove to you and to everyone else that I could make it work out." Now Dawn starts to tear up on the phone a bit as she admits that despite her lifetime trait of stubbornness, "I should have listened to you mom. That may not be saying much, but that's how I feel. The night I brought him home for dinner and he left, you warned me that he's not for me."

"I remember that," Johanna says. "Our first real scream fest. I knew that he was involved with May Maple some time back and for whatever reason, that relationship ended. I guess hearing May talk about him the way she does right after they broke up made me wonder. You understand that I was only looking out for you, right Dawn?"

"I know now. It's just like what they say about hindsight," she claims, gaining in virtue with every line coming out of her mouth. "You know, this entire thing just ended up in a big mess. You had to pay one thousand dollars to get me out of here; I'm likely going to lose a large chunk of my pay for cursing on television, and…I don't even have to talk about your punishment that you have for me…"

"Forget it," Johanna unexpectedly interjects. "I know it sounds…odd coming out of my mouth, but I'm glad that you had your release. I'm glad that you could get that out in the open because not only can you not shake it, but Drew can't either. You both will have to live with it for a very long time, and as far as the bail money, never mind. No amount of money can compare to having my girl back. So, even though you've caught all of this negative attention, I want you to know that I'm proud of you, Dawn Berlitz. You stood up to Drew and that takes guts. You'll need that attitude if you're gonna get through the Grand Festival."

Dawn winces for a bit over the phone. Did she really want to tell her mother this? Did she really have a choice? It seemed at that moment that Johanna was willing to drop everything that occurred between them while she was with Drew, but this had little to do with her past and a lot more to do with her present state. "Uh, yeah. About that, mom. I…I really don't know how to let you know this, but…I don't think that I'm going to compete in the Grand Festival."

"What? What in the world are you talking about, Dawn? You're not competing in the Grand Festival? Why? What's wrong?"

"Mom, just hear me out," she replies calmly. "This whole thing with Drew has just put a lot of things in perspective for me. He tried to buy his way out of taking care of his son, and now I have to compete against him? He shouldn't even be here for that. Don't we have a personal conduct policy or some other kind of…just any rule against that?"

"Why? This isn't the National Football League, this is coordinating! They don't pay people to be standup ladies or gentlemen in this sport. You're paid to be a coordinator! That's it! Look…I'm sure you're a little traumatized. I know you went to the hospital for headaches. You sound alright, but I can't be sure. I wanted to call you then, but I believe your phone was off. Now, I know you may not be thinking straight but consider this. Think about how hard you've worked to get your five ribbons to even get to this point. Think of that struggle and now think about the possibility of you throwing all of that away for what? Because you're pissed off at your ex for not taking care of _his _responsibility?"

"It's just that…I realize that there are more important things than coordinating. I feel like…"

"Uh, no shit, Dawn," Johanna interrupts much to the shock of her daughter. "Of course there are more important things. But you can't worry about him anymore! It's not your business, so you can't use his story as an excuse for not participating. Quit being such a damn softie and understand that you may not get another shot at this so you have to take full advantage of it. I know this has been your dream since you were five years old; to follow in my footsteps as a coordinator. So…just think about everything you're saying. Promise me that you're going to take as much time as you need and above everything else, do the right thing. Think about it."

"I will, mom."

"We'll just see. I'll talk to you later, all right?"

"All right, mom. I love you."

"I love you too, and again, it's good to have you back. Bye."

After a brief pause, Dawn decides to just close the conversation by saying goodbye to her mother in return. Bringing down the phone's receiver, she sighs deeply before she silently admits, 'It's good to be back.'

* * *

A/N: Okay, for some, this might have come sooner than thought, but I doubt that people will complain about this. After all, the story's back in full swing! Next chapter has May's final preparations for her appeal. Updates won't come as quickly in the next week or so due to other projects, but after mid-July, expect more than regular updates during the week.

Until next time, it's been Rave!


	27. Not Too Far Ahead

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

While sitting in Slateport City's Central Booking holding cell, Dawn doesn't say anything to Drew. Drew leaves the cell first and walks with Solidad back to the hotel saying that he will take care of their child, even if it hurts. Not that long afterwards, Dawn is released from jail. Both have been advised by law enforcement to meet with Raoul Contesta before the day ends. Dawn talks to Johanna, who paid her thousand dollar bail and got her out of prison. Despite everything that occurred in the press room, Johanna is proud of Dawn for standing up to Drew. She is shocked to hear that Dawn may not be competing in the Grand Festival. She wants her to reconsider and 'do the right thing'.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 27- Not Too Far Ahead)

* * *

Outside of the private costume dressing rooms for coordinators, a small but near-restless crowd of three is sitting and waiting. After being told by her and May's mother to wait outside while she gets into costume for her upcoming appeal, Kelly is getting very antsy as she anticipates exactly what Caroline and Julia have planned for the coordinator soon to be her fiancé. Overtime, as the clock ticks closer and closer to appeal time for the Petalburg native, Kelly along with May's father Norman and her father Erik wait for one of their wives to come to the door and say that May is ready.

"Do you have any clue what May is gonna be wearing for her appeal, Kelly?" asks her father.

"Not a clue, dad," Kelly responds. "Whatever it is, though, it's bound to impress. I know that much. She's not gonna disappoint," and with her final two words, she whispers, "she can't."

While Erik has a very good feeling what is on his daughter's mind at the moment, Norman is very confused by the hopeful and seemingly pleading tone of his daughter's girlfriend. "Are you alright, Kelly? You seem…not yourself."

"I'm…okay, Norman," she assures the gym leader. "I'm hanging in there as best as I can, but at the same time, I'm a ball of nerves. I'm thinking that no matter what any one of us do, it's all gonna come down to May and what she does. At this point, we've done all we can do to prepare her for this, now it's her turn to show the world what she's got. There's literally been a team of people that have come to help her because they believe she can do it. I just want her to win so badly, because…as her trainer, I know how hard she has worked over the past three to four weeks. Forgive my language, but she and her pokemon have literally worked their asses off for this moment and I don't think that it is selfish of anyone to want her to win for the hours she has put into this tournament. And there is another reason for me wanting to win. It's personal."

Once again, Erik knows exactly what Kelly is talking about when she mentions her reason for wanting her girlfriend to end up the victor this weekend. Given the tone of her voice right now, it sounds as if the part time coordinator is mentally preparing herself to ask Norman the question to end all questions. May had a similar inquiry of him a few hours ago and he said yes. If May's father claims to support her daughter and girlfriend's union so much, then he already knows the answer.

"Personal?" Norman asks the girl sitting next to her. "What—what are you talking about, Kelly?"

Kelly is ready, or at least she had better be ready to tell Norman about her future plans involving May. After a quick nod to her father standing next to him, she looks the Hoenn gym leader in the eye before saying, "Well, before I tell you what I mean, I want you to know that this is something that's been on my mind for several months now. Even while we were apart, this is something I've wanted to do for the longest time. The Grand Festival is the best place for me to surprise May and the world…"

Out of the blue, the sound of a classical tune is heard, and it is coming from the last place Kelly expected or wanted. Kicked out of his conversation with the Lilycove native, Norman reaches into his pockets to answer his cell phone. "Kelly, I'm sorry," he apologizes. Taking a singular glance at the window of his clam shell phone, Norman has no choice but to answer the phone. After all, it could be anything and he does not want to take any chances. "I have to take this," he explains, "it's from my father in South Africa. Excuse me, you two."

As Norman walks away from the father-daughter duo, Kelly can't help but show her frustration. "Damn!" she interjects. "And you'd think that he would understand what I'm trying to say after all that, huh dad? I mean, if you consider the facts, I've been contemplating this for several months and I've wanted to do this since I fell in love with May. Forgive me, but what in the world do you think I wanna do? Take her out to eat?"

"Well after all of this, you're gonna be doing a lot of that with May in the future. But watch it Kelly," Erik humorously warns her daughter, "after all, you are talking about your future father-in-law!" Afterwards, the two share some healthy and hearty laughter. They laugh so much they don't notice that Julia opened the door to let them inside.

"It's nice to see you two in good spirits," she says, thus stopping their laughing spree. "So, are you ready to see how May looks?"

"Yes, ma'am," they say in unison. Before they go inside, however, they inform Norman that they are about to head inside to see May before her appeal. He went off to the side to accept a phone call from his father, and upon hearing that his only daughter is ready, he asked him to hold for a moment.

Led by Julia inside of the dressing room, they see that May is turned around in a chair facing a mirror with her mother brushing her hair so that it falls directly down her back instead of her traditional dog ear bunches that she's continued to keep as a teenager. The way Caroline is positioned, only she and May can see how the coordinator looks at the moment.

"What do you think, honey?" she asks her daughter.

"I like it, and we're just in time."

"All right, everyone," Julia responds. Turning her attention to Norman, Erik and Kelly, she proceeds to introduce May, saying, "I present to you the person we hope will be the next Grand Festival champion and Slateport City's newest afternoon weatherwoman, May Maple!" After that, Caroline turns the beauty chair May is sitting in around so that she is now facing her father, girlfriend and her girlfriend's father.

They look at her in awe. She is wearing quite the ensemble for her judge's appeal. Looking at her face, one can immediately see the addition of black, thick-rimmed glasses with the lenses popped out. Her top is a black, pinstriped blazer above a white-collared shirt with a color-coordinated tie. The bottom is completed with a knee-length skirt, which is also pinstriped.

By instinct, Kelly comes forward if only to get a closer look at the gift from above before her. Smiling from one corner of her mouth to another, she touches both of May's cheeks and gets the best look in the room. A few seconds pass and a question is on Kelly's mind. Leaning in for a kiss, she stays close to the stylish trainer and simply asks her sweetheart, "Do you even know how beautiful you are, May?"

Diverting her gaze away from her trainer for a quick second, she doesn't want the tomboyish teen to see the red that is forming on her face. "Oh, stop it, Kelly!" she says.

"No, I won't stop," she retorts as a matter of fact. "I wanna keep going. Aside from how great you look right now, I also want to know how I ended up so lucky to have such supporting parents, a loving girlfriend and a great core of friends."

"Well, before you find that out," Norman speaks, "we're gonna have to go to the stage entrance before it's too late. Umm, May? Before we came in here, Granddad asked about you. He's on the phone if you want to speak to him."

"Right now?"

"Right now," Norman confirms as he hands the phone off to his daughter.

"Hey, Granddad Maurice," she greets. "It's me, May."

"Well, May. How are you doing in Slateport?"

"Very good. Say, is it all right if I put you on speaker so that grandma can hear you?"

"Absolutely, if you don't mind that I do the same on my end."

"Okay," says Maurice who is lounging on the beach with his wife. After both press a couple buttons on their respective phones to switch to speaker mode, May's grandfather continues, "So I understand from your dad that you're about to go do your appeal in a few minutes."

"Yes sir."

"Well the time is now just after ten o'clock in the morning over here in Cape Town, though we've been up quite a while touring the different spots," May's grandmother Katherine adds. "What time is it over there, May?"

"Five o'clock in the afternoon," she answers much to her surprise. "My goodness! That's a seven hour difference! Hard to believe, huh?"

"Tell me about it. Uh, is Max there with you?"

"Oh no, grandma. He's either in the stands right now or en route to the arena, but if you wanna talk to him later, I'll tell him you called."

"Very well," Katherine concedes.

"Hey, Mr. and Mrs. Maple? Can you hear me?" Kelly chimes in.

"Kelly, is that you?"

"Yes sir. I just want you to know that May is ready to go in about half and hour. You'll really like what we have planned if you can catch it in time. And I'm curious as to how you're enjoying the trip in South Africa? May and I talked about going there in a few months for the World Cup and we wanted to know what the atmosphere was like."

"Well, things are much calmer than they will be in three months time, dear," Katherine claims. "As far as things to do, you won't run out of those, especially in Johannesburg. But if you like surfing or just hanging out on the beach, Cape Town is probably where you will wanna stay."

"Thanks, I'll remember that," Kelly compliments.

"Speaking of 'stay'," Maurice piggybacks, "we better get our butts back to the hotel or we'll miss our granddaughter at her best."

"Dad!" Norman exclaims. "Okay, we'll give you time to head back and watch the appeal and then we'll talk to both of you after May finishes her work." Talking to everyone in the dressing room, Norman requests that they "say goodbye," to his parents, which they do and not too long afterwards, both lines are hung up.

"Well, May, it's time," Kelly states. "It's now or never, and I don't want you looking too far into this. It's no guarantee that you'll make it past this round so give it you're all." Several seconds of silence pass before the trainer admits to her trainee with her signature smirk, "I…don't know what else to tell you."

She questions back to her girlfriend, "Perhaps that's a sign that you've said all that you can say?"

"Well, I'll be darned," she admits before saying, "I guess there is nothing left to say except…" Leaning in to kiss her flame once more, she wraps up her final words of advice, whispering to May, "go out there and kick some ass, girl!"

The feeling is mutual. Whispering back to her sweetheart, May claims that she will do the aforementioned task, "With pleasure!"

* * *

A/N: This chapter preps you for the moment you've all been waiting for! May's appeal is coming next chapter, and will likely be the longest chapter of the series so far. Stay tuned for all the happenings in chapter 28!

Until next time, it's been Rave!


	28. Without Any Further Adieu

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Norman, Erik and Kelly wait just outside of the coordinator's private dressing rooms for May to get dressed in her appeal attire. During this time, Kelly finds herself in a situation where she could ask Norman for his daughter's hand in marriage. Unfortunately, a call from his father Maurice, who is vacationing in South Africa, keeps her from her goal. Going inside, they see that May is dressed like a weatherwoman. After some compliments from her girlfriend and a talk with her grandparents, May gets her final words of advice from her trainer and promises that she won't let her down.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 28- Without Any Further Adieu)

* * *

"Paul, what kind of soda do you want before I leave the kitchen?"

While on the couch with Ash lying across his body, he answers "Uh…do you have any ginger ale, Ms. Ketchum?"

Checking the refrigerator one more time, she sees that there is one more ginger ale remaining. "Yep! It's the last one too!" she says as she enters the family room with a tray containing a large bowl of popcorn, Paul's ginger ale and Ash's lemon-lime soda. "Here you go, boys!"

After comments such as "Great! Thank you!" from Paul and "Awesome! Thanks mom!" from Ash, Delia makes the turn to leave and go back into the kitchen while her son starts to dig into the great collection of kernels.

Before she can get any further, Paul takes a hold of her arm and says, "Wait a minute! Aren't you gonna stick around? May's appeal is next!"

"It is?" Mulling over it for a second, she realizes that her son and his boyfriend are correct. "Oh, yeah! That's right. Forgive me, Paul. I guess making all of the dinner plans for tomorrow's has got me running in a thousand directions. I have no choice to go at it on my own, though. Even after all these years, Ash still doesn't know how to boil water on a stove."

"Mom!" Ash counters, trying to save face in front of his ex-rival. It doesn't work as Paul is chuckling at the sentence-long story from Delia.

"Oh, God. That sounds so…"

"Pathetic?" she asks.

"Yep! There's my word!" he exclaims, giving Delia a high five in the process. Patting the left side of the couch where he was just sitting, Paul says to Ash's mother, "Come on, have a seat! We've got plenty of room!" While she obliges to Paul's request, the star pokemon trainer makes the comment to the young man next to him, "I like your mother more and more each day, Ash! Not to mention the fact that she has so much dirt on you that you could be a large construction site."

"Okay, enough Paul," Ash says, desperately seeking to regain control of the conversation, "I think that we are supposed to be watching an appeal of our friend now. I don't know how this turned into the roast of Ashton Ketchum so quickly."

"Oh, come now! It's all in fun, buddy! Loosen up!" Paul retorts. "Besides, I know Nata has something awesome planned for May. She wouldn't let May or any of her friends down for nothing. She's like Allstate; with her you're in good hands."

"Hold that thought, Paul. They're about to start."

Putting down the remote to the television, the trio in Pallet now have their eyes and ears glued to the television as they hear the play-by-play man Gavin, analyst Melinda and commentator Professor Birch talk about who is next on the list to do qualify for the second round.

"Coming up next is someone in coordinating who, quite frankly, has a pedigree that says she should be one of the absolute best by the time her career ends," Gavin explains to the viewing audience. "Her father is a prominent gym leader here in the Hoenn region and her mother was a champion pokemon coordinator during her teen years. But when she was young, her parents felt it best to keep her from the spotlight and let her live a normal life, much like her father's specialty pokemon during battle."

"Not once did they ever say that their daughter or younger son had to follow in their footsteps and become great pokemon trainers or coordinators," Melinda adds, "but it seemed that the itch caught them very early like it does many youngsters nationwide. I was not innocent of it myself, but I digress. Initially, as she admitted to us earlier, she was not the greatest fan of pokemon, but she became a great student of the game learning from trainers and coordinators alike over the past eight years."

The film now cuts to a sit-down interview that May gave earlier to the press, more specifically, Melinda about how she came to be as a top coordinator. "Truthfully speaking, no one can ever do it alone," May says to the 1992 Grand Festival Champion. "I've had so much help, not just this tournament, but for my whole career. I've gotten help from the whole spectrum of people who I really cared for a while back, but not so much right now. It doesn't matter, though, because the life lessons that I've learned from this line of work have put me in what I feel is my greatest position yet. I know that I can win the Grand Festival. My trainer Kelly, her family and all of my friends…"

"I don't see why they have to do this all the time," says an observer sitting at the foot of his bed. "All of these are the same when you get down to the basics."

"What are you moaning about now, Drew?" Solidad asks, leaving the bathroom of her hotel room. Unlike Drew, May and the other coordinators competing in the Grand Festival, Solidad is not staying in the Slateport Milton. Her time is being spent at a local hotel within the city limits, allowing for more family oriented room styles including the one she chose with a separate room giving her more space to place a collapsible crib for her son and several other items of choice. "It better not have to do with Damien. I just got him to go back to sleep."

"No, May's on the television, and she's about to do her appeal. The thing is they've got these useless interviews where they just talk about how you got to this point, and how you couldn't have gotten here without the help of so many people. Whenever you do an interview like that, you undermine yourself so much. Yes, there are a lot of people that have sacrificed so we could have great careers, but we had to put in more than our fair share of effort too! That's all I'm saying."

"Really?" Solidad replies, not entirely convinced. "Because I get the feeling that you have some sour grapes because May is being negative towards you once again. No one has those feelings unless they…have feelings."

"I just…you know what? She's chosen her lot in life and she can live with it. She claims she won't be together because of Kelly, and if she wants another girl, fine, but I hope she's ready…"

"Drew, cut the crap, please," Solidad interjects. "Forget her. She's in your past. She'll handle her own when the time comes." Pointing to the other bedroom, she states, "In that bedroom is your future and it's not a girlfriend or some other sex symbol. Despite what Dawn said, you don't have to be with me to love that boy. I'll be honest; I do want to be with you. I really do want to be with you as crazy as it might sound, but remember that the way to my heart is through my son."

"Isn't he _our_ son?"

Thinking about it for a second, Solidad knows that by blood, Drew is absolutely correct. But excluding that single factor, he is not getting the whole picture. Sitting down with Drew because she wants to see appeals, Solidad says "Not yet. I gonna get to the bottom of why you came up with that plan and lost three months of his life and then…we'll see."

Going back to the television screen, a middle aged man in his lab coat says, "I've watched this person grow up from a little girl into a young woman before my very eyes. She is a world champion no matter what happens from this moment on, but if she wants to go past this level, she has to impress just like her mom and her old man before her."

Lowering his head upon hearing that last remark, Norman laments, saying, "I resent being called 'old man' on worldwide television." He is sitting down in the waiting room of the stage entrance in front of a big screen television. Watching the program along with him are his wife and all three of the Marins. "I'm not old, am I?"

Kelly, Erik and Julia decline to answer the question through their silence, but Caroline decides to answer her husband by telling him, "Well, you're not that far off for you, honey. After all, you _are_ forty-one going on forty-two in November," says his wife.

"So are you."

"Do you really feel the need to rub it in, Norman?"

"Hey, Norman! You want some company?" someone asks, potentially saving himself a scolding from his wife. Turning around, it seems that Kenny has gotten his girlfriend and everyone else that has lent a helping hand towards May's Grand Festival efforts to come together in support of the coordinator. With Zoey, Kenny, Holly, Conway, Lucy, Brock, Max and Harley all greeting the Petalburg gym leader, he begins to get more than a bit choked up at the respect that is being show for his only daughter.

"Everyone?" he says to get the attention of the large crowd which formed very quickly, "I just wanna thank you all for supporting my daughter this weekend. It means so much and…it really makes this father proud of his girl."

All of the friends and family feel for Norman during what is clearly an emotional moment for the gym leader. As they sit down in the waiting room in front of the TV, they make it clear that they don't mind lending a helping hand to May in the least bit.

"Now, down at ringside, we have Robert Weis waiting for May's arrival in just a few seconds," Professor Birch informs the audience, "and I understand that May has some…instructions for you and everyone else here in the Slateport Stadium. Would you care to let us in on what the live audience is apparently supposed to do before the appeal?"

"Yes, professor," he answers after a second-long delay. Holding up a clear, plastic item in his left hand he explains, "A runner handed this to me during the commercial break. He told me that everyone here in the stadium should be wearing one during her appeal. _It_ is a poncho, and as everyone out there knows, you wear one during inclement weather. They are provided for each member of the audience in case it does rain, but as I look up in the sky right now, there's not a dark cloud to be found. It would seem very silly to wear this at the moment, but if May says we have to, then she must have something…monumental planned that would put even the gods and the titans to shame. Will May write her own chapter of avant-garde pokemon coordinating and tell a story that will be heard long after numerous millennia have passed? The wait is over. Without any further adieu, here is Ms. Vivian Meridian to do the call."

As music blares through the loudspeakers in the large arena, public address announcer Vivian Meridian is given her cue through an earpiece to read off the card describing the next coordinator to come on stage. "Ladies and gentlemen! Coming to the stage at this time is the 253rd coordinator attempting to qualify for this year's Hoenn Grand Festival. She is an eight year veteran of the sport who has the rare but potent combination of power pokemon with the finesse and a flare for the spotlight that makes for a true champion of this sport. Now in her seventh attempt at a Grand Festival victory, she will use the services of an unproved rookie trainer in the hopes of catapulting her to the top. To get here, she has won ribbons in Oldale Town, Rustboro City, Fallarbor Town, Fortree City and Mossdeep City. Ladies and gentlemen, from Petalburg City, she is May…Maple!"

Watching from a local hangout in Slateport, Dawn sees the telecast switch to the stage entrance of the large stadium. Swirling her soda with a straw, she makes the comment, "Well, that introduction took long enough." Just a few seconds later, the second generation coordinator watches as May comes out and walks to the center of the stage in her weatherwoman attire carrying what appears to be a pink poncho in her right hand. Dawn has to give her rival some respect and she does so by saying, "Damn, she looks good!" Taking a couple of gulps of her cream soda, she adds, "Now let's just see if she can pull this off."

After walking past half of a football field to make it to center stage of the arena, May puts on her poncho and stands at attention at one end of the ring floor awaiting the instructions of the referees on duty. Those who watch in the stadium and at home can see that her poncho has several pictures of Skitty on it, and it becomes quite clear to just about everyone which one of her pokemon she will be using this afternoon.

As the referees convene between one another, they decide that it is time to get the show on the road and begin the appeal. "May, whenever you're ready, you may begin," the senior referee says to the coordinator.

Nodding, she reaches into the front pocket of her skirt, presses the button of her pokeball to expand it to regular length and throws it to the center of the stage, saying, "Skitty, front and center!" The ball opens up to reveal a red light and a cat pokemon who says her name briefly before smiling while on center stage.

Walking in the direction of her pokemon, May takes out another item from her pockets. Kneeling down, she brushes the fur of Skitty and then places what appears to be some sort of ring around her tail with a large pink block attached to one half of the band. May clasps the ring onto a portion of the tail and makes sure that it will not fall off easily. After a final check, May is assured that the performance will go off without a hitch. "Do well, my friend," she says before once again brushing her fur with her hand and going back to her position at the other end of the battle floor.

Nodding to the referees once again, May lets them know, "I'm ready," and they blow their whistles signaling the booth to start the clock for her appeal.

"Hey, Skitty! Turn around!" she exclaims to her pokemon. Turning around, Skitty sees something that she likes quite a bit. It's one of Kelly's special pokeblocks, which are like candy for the cat pokemon. Skitty goes through the exercise of chasing her tail in an attempt to reach the ring and get her mouth onto the block.

'Perfect,' May thinks. "Now let's get going! Start off with rain dance!" Slowly but surely, drizzle starts to saturate portions of the field and a few of the spectators, but at the moment, nobody is reaching for their ponchos. Seconds pass and the rain gets to shower level and most of the folks in the audience are putting on their weather wear so they will not get drenched. Rain dance is doing its job and then some as the field and its observers feel waterlogged.

Feeling that Skitty has proven her point, May goes to her next command. "Okay, how about we cool things down? Let's see ice beam, now!" With an attack like ice beam fired in every single direction on an already drenched field, the live crowd can feel the chill. Shivering through their sandals and light shoes, they know that ponchos were not enough for this occasion and they would have been better off getting heavy coats for the appeal instead of thin plastic even though Hoenn is not known for being a cold region. Despite the cute and cuddly look of the pokemon performing at the moment, Skitty packs a heavy punch bringing a cold snap to a place which experiences more than its share of warmth.

Skitty, despite having spun for over forty-five seconds, does not appear to be tired as she remains on the chase for a very stubborn pokeblock. "Skitty, I don't think that it's cold enough here. Give 'em blizzard and let's turn this into a winter wonderland." Given that it is the month of March, that is quite a proposition for the normal type but considering the success of the ice beams, it was not difficult by any means. Skitty successfully played the role of a snow blower, but in reverse. She blew snow onto the crowd and on the field, covering spectators and turning them into snow people before May's very eyes. If they didn't feel the cold then, they were cold-blooded.

"All right! Now, let's see thunder!"

More than a minute has passed with Skitty still spinning in her pursuit of the pokeblock. Though the snow continues to fall, a bolt of lightning makes an appearance during the fall of frozen water. Seeing lightning during a snowfall is a rare but possible occurrence and it shocked many people in the crowd, no pun intended, to see the thunderbolt come down directly from the sky and onto the playing field.

"Now, combine more thunder with an icy wind!"

Even more thunderbolts come down to the playing ground and with Skitty in continual motion around and around, the icy wind twists around in a funnel that rises to the top of the stadium growing in size and stature as the seconds tick down in her appeal time. Lightning strikes and a cold tornado cause a one of a kind effect to happen and a curious public to look on in awe. May's appeal seemed to mimic movie magic with everything looking larger and more defined like it was seen through a silver screen in a dark room. High definition had nothing on what the many spectators in Slateport were seeing.

May takes yet another look at the clock to see that there were about forty seconds remaining in her appeal. At this point, she is on schedule in terms of what she wanted to do in the time she wanted to do it. For the longest time, she holds onto this particular combination of thunderbolts and an icy tornado longer than any other command in her appeal since it began. This allows the attacks to grow even greater in their overall size as Skitty continues to keep up her overall pace in her spinning.

As the tornado continues to rise higher and higher into the air twisting its cold air mass in a foreign direction compared to its natural tendency to fall down to the ground, the time continues to tick. If May did nothing else after this point, she will have given the fans an appeal that would take her to tomorrow's elimination round, but she has just a little bit more in store for the masses.

"Now, flash!" she screams with all her might, and all at once the crowd is temporarily blinded by a flash of energy in the form of light. The audience can't see anything, but what they can here is the faint sound of wind gusting off in the distance and light thunder booming with less frequency than just fifteen seconds prior to the flash.

While all is calm at this moment, May continues to keep the atmosphere going in that direction with her final command. "All right, Skitty! Wrap things up with sunny day." With this command, the storm that once dominated the field is now cleared and the sun intensifies, even though it will go down in just a few hours. The sun carries with it several effects. For one, the field and the people in the stands are drying very quickly, rendering the use of the ponchos unnecessary for some folks. Another effect that comes with the blazing sun in the sky is that the moisture that is still in the atmosphere refracts the rays of the hydrogen and helium orb, creating a large rainbow in the sky and eliciting 'oohs' and 'aahs' from those watching live. The arch of this semicircle in the air stretches from one end of the stadium to the other, with its intent for everyone to see it made possible through many weeks of practice and not a single moment left to spare as the referee's whistle blows once more signifying the end of the appeal and causing a high amount of applause inside the open-aired stadium.

Chants continue for the coordinator, and a few people even chant the number 'fifty' to let the judges know what they thought of the appeal. Raising her arms in a sign of a small victory, she takes her poncho off of her back, stuffs it in her pocket and walks up to her pokemon to let her know she can stop spinning. Pulling out another special blend of Kelly's pokeblocks, she feeds a blue and a pink one to Skitty, returns her to her pokeball and says to her, "You were incredible, Skitty. Thank you, my friend."

Then, much to her surprise, an arm is draped across her shoulder. Sharply turning around she feels relief knowing that it is Robert, who wants to speak to her about what just occurred. "May. May, I know that as a reporter for this event, more or less, I should be objective, but I doubt that anyone will fault me for saying…that that was one of the finest appeals that I have ever had the pleasure of seeing in person." The crowd once again cheers wildly as they agree with the former Hoenn Grand Festival champion. Though May does not speak through the microphone, she does thank Robert for the compliment.

"Unfortunately," Robert adds, "I do not have a vote in the appeals. The five individuals over there, however, do have a vote. Why don't we begin with Director Contesta?"

"Yes, May. I can't be objective, but I will say that I agree with everything Robert said. You brought what is often referred to as the 'A' game. Using all the elements in unique ways showed your Skitty's power along with its gracefulness as it was able to harness all of this energy without things getting out of control. Fantastic work!"

"Thank you. Now Suziko?"

"Amazingly remarkable are the words that come to mind immediately," Suziko responds.

"And Slateport City Nurse Joy?"

"Just a great weather display. You never get the feeling that Skitty is capable of doing so much as a normal type pokemon, but she overachieves in the right way putting her work front and center more so than she did herself."

"Three down and two to go," Robert states. "Now let's hear from the Littleroot Town Nurse Joy!"

"I'll just say that you've made your first step to the next round. If you haven't made it to the next round with that performance, something is wrong."

Awaiting yet another bout of applause to die down, Robert then says, "And last but not least, the Nurse Joy of Ever Grande City."

Smiling towards May and not being able to find the words to say, she just adds, "What everyone else said. Incredible job! I've never seen anything quite like it!"

"Okay, while the judges tally their scores, I've got a few questions. First off, May, how in the world did you come up with the idea for this appeal?"

"Well, it came about while I was training for the Grand Festival. My main trainer Kelly Cruz-Marin did a great deal of studying on Skitty's attack list and found that a lot of the attacks would correlate together well. It was just a matter of getting things done in time, which I was able to do."

"Now, where did the idea of having Skitty spinning throughout the appeal come from?"

"That was actually an eleventh hour decision. Brock Harrison is here with his girlfriend Lucy to help me during final practice, and he made the suggestion that having Skitty spin would increase the attack power and make it so everyone in the arena could see just what was happening. I'm glad that it was able to work so well."

"And indeed they did see all that happened. This audience; some of them are still in awe of what you've done this afternoon. Finally, I'm sure everyone out there wants to know what you used to keep Skitty running in circles for so long."

"It's her favorite blend of pokeblock called 'Sweet Caroline' attached to a ring on her tail. It was made by my trainer just for Skitty. She likes it more than my other pokemon."

"Okay, I'm being told now that the judges have their scores ready." Pointing to a part of the stadium with a screen, Robert explains, "If you look up there, May, you'll see the overall score for your appeal. Now…let's all see what you got. Up in the booth? What's the score?"

A second or so passes as May takes a deep breath and watches the screen without blinking an eye or turning her glaze. It pays off as she is rewarded with seeing the numbers five and zero on the screen in that order. The crowd, May and Robert all go wild with Robert exclaiming "You got a fifty! You got a fifty! You got a perfect score! It's the first perfect score today! You're number one on the charts, May!"

May does not really listen to what Robert has to say. Instead, she screams wildly and jumps up in the air several times knowing that all the hard work it took just to qualify for this event has paid off, and then some. All May cares about is hugging the person nearest to her, and that happens to be Robert, who she squeezes with all her might while still jumping up in the air taking the former Grand Festival champion with her.

Letting go of May, there is one question that Robert is sure is on everyone's mind. "May, how do you feel?"

After a squeal and a wide-mouthed smile, May looks at the microphone in front of her face and says, "I…I…I'm speechless. I'm sorry. I got no words. But I did it! I did it!"

"Thanks, May, and now you can head to the back and celebrate. You deserve it!"

"Thank you, Robert, and extra special thanks go out to each and every one of you here! I just can't do it without your support over the last eight years. Thank you!" she says once more running down the ramp leading to the stage entranceway. While a walk takes about thirty seconds or more, the run cuts the time into about eight seconds and runs through the curtain where she is met by welcome arms.

While friends and family applaud, whoop, holler and congratulate May in the backstage area, Kelly gives her the greatest congratulations of anyone else by holding her girlfriend in her arms and swinging her around saying "You did it, May. It was all you, baby! I knew you could do it!"

"Kelly, cut it out," Kenny interjects. "I don't know if May is as well conditioned as Skitty. If she throws up, then it's your fault."

"Kenny, be quiet," Zoey replies while a lot of the other guests laugh guiltily at his quip. "You just might save a life—like your own."

Kelly finally stops swinging her girl around like she was a participant of the hammer throw in the Olympics to say, "Don't worry, Zoey. Nothing will get me down."

"Now I gotta say," Conway adds, "_that_ was worth the cost of admission alone. I love training, but that would convince almost anyone to get into coordinating. I would have given you an eleven if I had a vote. Damn,what an appeal!"

"I agree," says Pike Queen Lucy. "You stuck with the plan until the very end, and it paid off. I said you were well on your way to a fifty earlier and…let's just say that I know great work with pokemon when I see it."

Shaking the hand of the Frontier Brain, Lucy thanks her while being held and hugged by her parents and brother, who can not stop telling their daughter and sister how proud they are of her. From this point on, May gets the same treatment from everyone else close by.

Hearing the compliments come almost ad nauseum, Kenny grows more than just a bit impatient. While still in the midst of many kudos going in the direction of May, with one now coming from Holly, Kenny makes the suggestion, "Okay, no offense meant but I think we all understand. We are all proud of May for getting the perfect score in her appeal. So why don't we do the appropriate thing and…celebrate! I know of a great restaurant in town. When they know who you are, May, I know they'll give you a free meal and then we can all go dancing."

"Yes, Kenny," Zoey agrees. "They'll give _her_ the free meal, because _she_ got the perfect score. What did you do to deserve a free meal?"

"I made the suggestion, Z-Girl."

"You know what?" Kelly interjects in order to avoid any further arguments between Kenny and Zoey, "That's a great idea, Kenny. This victory does deserve to be celebrated. Who wants to celebrate?" Kelly gets nothing but approval for the idea to go out and give May a proper celebration for her accomplishments. Turning to her partner; she feels it necessary to emphasize an important point. "But remember, May. This is just the beginning. Your foot is in the door now, but I know you're not satisfied by just making it to the next round, right?"

"Heck no," she answers. "I know I'm just getting started. I've got work to do to figure out when to utilize Blaziken and the others tomorrow. I know I can't celebrate for long, but I will most certainly enjoy this one as long as I can."

"As you should, girl," Kelly responds. "I mean, think about it! There are seventy people left! Only a couple of coordinators have a shot at matching you. There's Dawn Berlitz, who will go out last, and then there's…"

Kelly was about to finish her thought and let everyone in the party know who she thought had a great chance of scoring a mark like May just did. She was close, but ended up not doing it because she heard the sounds of members of the paparazzi flashing their cameras and asking for someone to pose along with her boyfriend. This person, along with the throng of media, walks through the tunnel and talks about proper conduct of an 'idol' while in contest mode. Kelly could care less what she is saying to the press, but Zoey can't help but exclaim, "Hey, it's Marina Del Raymond and her boyfriend Jimmy Aurum! I didn't know they'd be here!"

Zoey, a big fan of the pokemon idol, waves in the direction of Marina, who is getting a look at the backstage area before her appeal in about an hour. Marina, who never misses an opportunity to show her fans her love, walks over to Zoey to say hello…and she unexpectedly sees Kelly, Erik and Julia Marin off to the side. Watching Kelly wide eyed, she can't find the words to come out of her system having not seen either of the three in several years.

Out of whatever politeness she can muster for the young woman, Kelly greets Marina, unemotionally saying "Hello, Marina. It's been a while, hasn't it?"

"Hey, Marina. Who are these people?" Jimmy asks from behind her back, not recognizing any of the faces.

Flustered, the coordinator does not know how to answer the question. The fact is that answering the question will bring about many more questions and Marina just isn't ready for the third degree to come. "Uh…no one," she answers, hoping that Jimmy didn't hear Kelly call her by name. "I thought they were someone I knew from a while back, but…I made a mistake. I don't know them. Come on, honey. Let's go to the club box and check out some more appeals," and with these words, Jimmy, Marina and the paparazzi walk through the tunnel once more and away from Kelly and the crew.

Watching what happened, no one really knows what to make of the scene. Everyone feels more than a bit uncomfortable given the situation and no one really wants to say anything. Losing her mind in the midst of the silence, Kelly says "Let's just go, everyone. Come on. Let's celebrate. Don't worry about it."

"Kelly, what was that?"

"I said don't fucking worry about it, Zoey!" Kelly screams before leaving through the tunnel and out of the stadium. May runs after Kelly with both sets of parents and the rest of the family and friends not that far behind her.

* * *

A/N: Longest chapter of the series by far. Kelly's ex-girlfriend was Marina, but as you know, there is much more to the story than that. And because I'm a trivia nut, can anyone out there guess why I gave Jimmy the surname 'Aurum'?

Until next time, this has been Rave!


	29. Everything Else is Secondary

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

All the hype surrounding May's appeal was well founded. Her two minutes training her Skitty consisted of a large rainstorm, a blizzard, thunder, lightning, a cold tornado, a flash and a sunny sky leading to a rainbow. She scored a perfect score of fifty, making her the number one ranked coordinator for the 2010 Hoenn Grand Festival. Running back to the stage, she gives her girlfriend a big hug. After much congratulations and commendations, her friends suggest they go out to eat and celebrate with a little dancing. Before they can finalize plans, though, Kelly comes across former Grand Festival champion Marina backstage. Marina sees Kelly's family and ignores them when boyfriend Jimmy asks who they are. Kelly becomes irate when Zoey questions what happened between her and Marina and leaves the backstage area.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 29- Everything Else is Secondary)

* * *

"Kelly!" May exclaims, running in the direction her girlfriend is playing catch up. Right behind May are her parents and Kelly's parents with their large slew of friends bringing up the rear of a close-knit pack. "Kelly, wait up! Slow down, girl!"

Hearing this, the doctor in training stops her trek for a second, looks in the direction of the people off to the side and punches a brick wall on her right. "Damn her! Damn that bitch straight to hell!" she screams in frustration before putting her head down.

Stopping in this area of the stadium bides Caroline, Norman, Julia, Erik and May the time to get close to their loved one and see a very disturbing look on her face. Her cobalt blue eyes are stained with the redness that can only come from two things and Kelly does not have any allergies whatsoever. Her face is very cross and her mouth is scrunched together leaving only a small opening in the middle for her to suck in air.

The very proud girl is trying her best to hide her face from family and friends so they do not see her at her most vulnerable point. Turning away from the small crowd in front of her, May notices the right hand of her best friend. "Kelly, your hand!"

"What?" she asks before looking down at her right hand. She soon learns to regret the action as she sees a large amount of red liquid starting to form a thin layer on her hand. "Oh, shit!" Kelly exclaims as she makes the mistake of flexing her fingers and aggravating the bones in her hands once seeing the blood. Clearly, the girl is in a great deal of pain and until she looked at the damage done to her hand, her anger clouded whatever potential injuries she might have suffered due to the punch to the wall.

"Baby, don't move it!" May warns her partner. Like a surgeon, the Petalburg coordinator uses extra special care in handling Kelly's hand by gently moving her fingertips back and forth to form an amateur prognosis of the situation at hand. "We should go to the E.R. and check it out to be safe. It _is _bleeding, after all."

With friends and family surrounding her, they get a very good look at Kelly's right hand. The image is a cringe-worthy one as the blood drips down onto the concrete floor of the Slateport Stadium.

"I agree with May, sweetheart," says Erik. "It's better to be safe than sorry with something like this. You might have broken or dislocated bones, so this is nothing to fool around with at all."

"Just get it checked and you can head back for some more training before you know it," Kelly's mother adds. "It shouldn't take more than an hour at most."

Kelly Cruz-Marin is a stubborn one, no doubt. It is hard to argue with her mother and father's logic though, and that is what causes her to reluctantly say, "Okay, I'll go to the emergency room." Looking at all of her friends and extended family, she adds, "The only people I would like to come with me are May and my folks. For everyone else, I don't want this setback to get in the way of…whatever fun any of you guys might have planned for the night." Kelly said this with the swinging foursome on their mind. Though she could not tell at first glance, Zoey and Holly, but more so Zoey, give their bedfellows the evil eye in the hopes that they will not make any cheesy or unnecessary jokes hinting to their activities planned for tonight.

"That's fine," Kenny says in the place of some other expected words. "All that we care about is that you're okay, Kelly. All the other stuff is…secondary for now…"

"He's right," Conway interjects, feeling that the coordinator from Sinnoh has said more than what needs to be said. Now turning to his girlfriend, he lets her know, "I gotta go to the bathroom, Holly."

"All right," she answers as they share a kiss and he leaves for another area near the stage entrance where they just left. "Take your time, Connie."

"Maybe I'll see you all later," Kelly comments, holding out some hope for the idea, "but if I don't, then good night to you all. After this, we gotta get the final details of May's strategy for tomorrow down, and, of course, we all have to get in a good night's sleep."

"Well, there is more that we could do at night than just…"

"Come on, Kenny! Let's go!" both Holly and Zoey exclaim. Before taking the young pokemon coordinator away by both of his arms, they bid the Marins, the Maples, and everyone else a good night and farewell as they head in the direction of the bathrooms, which are situated near the stage entrance. They take about a minute or so dragging him near the tunnel leading towards the stadium.

"How the heck do you deal with this boy's mouth, Zoey?" Holly questions as she holds onto a grip of Kenny's left forearm while her soon-to-be sexual partner takes hold of the right.

"Well," Zoey says, as if she's trying to figure out how to answer her friend's inquiry. "A good set of earplugs, an even better sense of humor and—aw, who the hell am I kidding? I don't know! Don't ask me something like that right now! I might have an epiphany and scare myself half to death thinking of my so-called life at the moment and all that I've done with and besides this guy. For instance, would you care to guess, Holly, how many teen girls and young women I've had sex with since I started swinging?"

"Would you gals mind not dragging me around like I'm someone's dead carcass?" Kenny requests as calmly as the setting will allow. "I can walk, you know? I've been doing it for almost fifteen years." Stopping in their tracks, Zoey and Holly consider letting the loud-mouthed coordinator walk on his own two feet. They wonder if he has received enough punishment for his tendency to blurt out whatever is on his mind at the moment. "And besides, Zoey, would you really reveal something that personal with your ex-crush standing about five meters away?"

"What are you talking about _now_, simple boy?"

"I'm talking about Dawn over there by the producer's table and the tunnel. Would you really like her and Holly to both know that you've went down on at least…"

No sooner than it seems as if the number was about to exit the mouth her boyfriend does Zoey let go of Kenny, causing him to fall to the ground with the back of his head landing on the concrete first. His descent down to the stadium floor was almost a given considering that the more feminine trainer lacked the muscular strength to hold him upright on her own.

"Ah, shit!" he exclaims as Holly slowly helps him back up to his feet in case he feels lightheaded due to the bump. Feeling his forehead, he says 'Thank you' to the girl before making a case that, "She should have at least given me a warning before running off like that, Holly. You know what? Fuck it. I'm fine." Pointing to the sign showing a picture to signify a male, he asks, "Do you think that Conway went into this bathroom here?"

"To be honest, I'm not even sure," she makes clear to Kenny. "He did go in the direction that we're in, though, so I'd say that that one would be your best bet."

"Thanks," he responds, "I wanna talk with him because I got this inspiration for the 'getting to know you' portion of our fun." Taking a glance at his watch, he sees that, "It's about…quarter 'til six, so there's still plenty of time to get all of our plans straightened out, even though it is technically the evening."

"Talk with Conway in the bathroom; is that…code for you wanting to make out with my boyfriend in the stalls, right?"

"Oh, you've done that before, Holly?"

"Yeah, but I didn't do it with Conway. It was…on a dare with another boy when I was like twelve years old or something. I never did it again when other girls said I was easy and I didn't do much of anything with guys until my teens." Rolling her eyes for a second at the absurdity of what she did when she was younger including the ironic fact that it was the girls who propositioned her to do the dare, she switches subjects. "But…what about Zoey? She just went to talk with Dawn. Don't you wanna hear what they say?"

"This will be quick," Kenny counters. "I just wanna let him know of a change of plans because he does have my money…and I do want to get in a few more kisses before tonight."

"Okay, don't take too long and do not get arrested," Holly jokingly responds as she walks over to a scene of Zoey sitting next to perhaps the only threat to May remaining number one of sixteen coordinators for Sunday's elimination round. The young woman, who stands about as tall as the men, just stays back and listens to the scene taking everything in.

Meanwhile, the teen coordinator enters the men's restroom nearby the main stage entrance. Having taken part in one Hoenn Grand Festival before, he knows that the restrooms are somewhat large backstage for whatever reason. Next to about eight different closed off stalls painted in jet black are ten urinals of a like color. All of them are vacant; a good sign as he sees a young gentleman dressed in green with dark hair coming down to his neck by the sinks washing his hands.

'Jackpot!' Kenny thinks as he walks up to the young man, turns him around by his right arm and plants a big, wet one right on Conway's lips.

While still in the lip lock, Kenny feels Conway start to resist and pull away. To this, he grips at the sides of his friend harder. Then, while still connected with the trainer from Veilstone, a pain hits his neck and causes him to scream out and let go of the kiss. Once backed up, he can now see that a grave mistake has been made.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?"

"Max?" he questions.

Rolling his eyes, he answers, "Uh, yeah! What's the big idea kissing me like that?"

"I—I," Kenny stammers, "I'm really sorry. I thought that I was kissing Conway."

"You thought you were kissing Conway? What in the world—do I _look_ like Conway Ericsson to you?"

"Yes. He's wearing the same shirt that you're wearing right now."

Before Max has a chance to chastise Kenny for his smart-alecky comment, the two teen boys hear a noise in one of the stalls that sounded like a pound. "Max!" says this person in the stall before the sound of a toilet flushing follows and Kenny gets the hint as he makes his way out of the restroom to escape the wrath of a flaming hot boyfriend.

"Hey! Where are you going?" Suddenly, the door to one of the stalls unlocks and is pushed open with great force by Max's much older suitor, Harley.

Grinning in front of his best buddy, Max says hello to the male towering in front of him. "Hi honey. Um, are you ready…?"

Max can not finish because the violet-haired grass trainer slaps his boyfriend hard across his left cheek. "You bastard! What the hell was that, Max? Did I just see you kissing that guy through the stalls?"

"Yes, but he forced himself on me!" he says, pleading for some understanding from the flamboyant one. "It was Kenny, and he thought I looked like Conway!"

"Whatever! You could've stopped him, but you held on!"

"I tried to stop him! He's larger than me, so I bit him! Please, you gotta believe me! I wouldn't pull any crap like that!"

Shaking his head, Harley finds what he is about to say very sad. "I'm sorry, but I don't believe you. You were in a lip lock and you were snogging with that son of a bitch for almost ten seconds!"

"I told you…"

"You could have let go and at least said something!" he screams. With his head down, he tears up and tells Max, "I'm out of here. Good bye, Little Maximus," and leaves the restroom to get away from the deceiver in the midst.

Bewildered how everything happened so fast, Max does not run to Harley asking for forgiveness. He doesn't even make an effort to bash in the head of Kenny for kissing him in a restroom, of all places. All he could do is slump down to the black and white tiled floor and bawl his eyes out as things take a turn from the for the worst in one fell swoop, or more correctly, one kiss. "I'm telling the truth, Harley-kins! Why won't you believe me? Did you hear what I told Kenny? He forced himself on me! Why don't you get that?"

* * *

"So I saw the press conference earlier with you and Drew," Zoey remarks while sitting near an office of some sort in one chair while her old friend Dawn sits next to her in another seat. "I have—I can't say I've ever seen anything as wild as that. There is no denying that he and you are done, though. You showed him that you wouldn't take any of his crap combined with him refusing to take responsibility for bringing a baby boy into this world. He deserves to have his ass kicked just for that!"

For the first time in a long time, Dawn has a very healthy laugh. Zoey may not have been the best as far as philosophy or pep talks, but her words can be understood by just about everyone who hears them, which might be more important than how the message is presented.

When she stops laughing and settles down, Zoey makes the comment, "I had a feeling you needed that, Dawn."

"You're right. I didn't think about something my mother said to me when she had a…kind of 'birds and bees' talk with me a few years back. She had to have had some idea that things would go this way because she told me that when I date that breakups are not the end of the world. 'Sometimes, you'll even look back at some of your exes and laugh,' she said to me. Well, it took me some time, but I guess the fact that he was my first coupled with my desire to make it work caused me to overstay my welcome."

A moment of silence passes before Zoey says, "I'm glad that you're back."

"Thank you," she answers before covering her face for a second, and with a moan, she exclaims, "Oh, God! I've done so much crap! I know that you've had feelings for me and I've been such an ass about all of this. I thought that mocking May for her close relationship with Kelly or ridiculing you and Kenny for your behavior would put me in good favor with Drew."

"It wasn't even worth it in the end, but I wanna be absolutely clear when I say this; I don't hate gays or lesbians. I just thought that that would impress him, but—and I know that that's fuzzy logic, but I rarely thought straight during that time. Again, he's not worth it anymore. What I guess I'm trying to say is…" yet another moment passes and Zoey can see a tear escape the eye of her once good friend. Pulling Dawn in for a hug, she feels that things can take a turn for the better step by step. "Zoey, I'm sorry," she tearfully speaks.

"I accept your apology," Zoey answers, with tears coming out of her eyes, as well.

"I'm glad," says this new voice, which curiously sounds a bit winded. It's Kenny, who at the behest of both Zoey and Dawn, joins in on the hug and says that he is willing to forgive Dawn, as well. "I just want to know that you are okay. You're okay, right?"

"I am now."

"Then that's all that matters," Kenny assures his old crush. "Everything else is secondary; _this_ is what's most important. But eventually," he adds, "you're gonna have to apologize to Kelly and May. The bottom line is they didn't deserve to be called those awful things. Am I right?"

"No, you're right," Dawn replies. "I'll speak to them."

"Good," Zoey compliments as the group hug between her, Dawn and Kenny continues with great emotion behind each squeeze and touch.

Looking at this moment from afar, Holly becomes a little teary eyed as well. Knowledgeable to an extent of all of the problems Kenny, Zoey and Dawn have faced with each other, she is happy to see that despite it all, they can forgive each other and move forward without any problems.

It makes her think about her good relationship with Conway, until she is spooked out of her boots by a pair of arms clasping her lower torso. Looking to her left, she is delighted to see one of the top trainers in Veilstone right beside her.

"Hey, beautiful," he greets.

"Say, where were you?"

Pointing in the opposite direction of the restroom where Kenny sought to find Conway, he answers, "There's a restroom next to a couple of vending machines down that hall. I would have bought something, but…I'm not terribly hungry and there will be time later to eat."

"Uh-huh."

"Hey! Dawn Berlitz!" Conway suddenly notices. Before he can go up to the coordinator from Twinleaf, who is in a more than curious hug with Zoey and Kenny, the bespectacled one is held back by his girlfriend.

Shaking her head, Holly makes it clear in her actions and words to, "Let them be for now. You have plenty of time to see and talk to her again, but those three are _just _catching up. Think about it, and just…look." Following directions, Conway sees the embracing and for a second, does not understand the big deal. Then he remembers that the reason why the two Sinnoh coordinators came together had to do with the blue-haired one in the middle. He is certain that tears have fallen in both their faces over the debacle with Drew with the difference in this instance being that the tears are all in the name of joy.

For Kenny and Zoey, this is the Dawn Berlitz they fell for many years ago that they were hugging and they could not be happier to see her again; this time, for good.

* * *

A/N: Next chapter has Dawn's meeting with Contesta and a big surprise there. Also we look deeper into Jimmy and Marina. Plus, Max seeks out Kenny, who during that time starts the aforementioned 'getting to know you' process at one of his favorite hangouts in Slateport City.

Until next time, it's been Rave!


	30. The Same Mistake

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

In a great deal of anger, Kelly pounds a brick wall in the Slateport Stadium when ex-girlfriend Marina practically ignores her when their paths cross at the Grand Festival. She punches hard enough to bloody her and cause some discomfort. She, May and their parents go to the ER to get it checked. Kenny encounters someone in the bathroom who he thinks is Conway but is actually Max. Harley is in this same bathroom and spots the scene. He slaps Max in disgust and leaves him there. Zoey meets up with Dawn and along with Kenny, they decide to put everything in their past behind them.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 30- The Same Mistake)

* * *

The hug that Kenny, Zoey and Dawn are sharing is one that you do not want to let go or ever end. Unfortunately, moments like the one they are having often do not last long enough. "Excuse me, Miss Berlitz?" says a female assistant for the Grand Festival. "Director Contesta will see you now. You know? It's part of the request that he gave to you while you got sent to Central Booking. You only have about fifteen minutes with him during this planned intermission and then he has to get back to judging appeals."

"Okay. I'll be just a moment," she speaks. With the reasons for her being backstage at this time crystal clear to everyone around her, Dawn seeks to get herself together prior to this meeting similar to a grade school student awaiting to speak with the principal of the school for some unknown reason. Kenny and Zoey, at the silent request of their reunited friend, help her back up on her feet.

"You'll be all right," says her childhood friend. "Just hope that Contesta is in a good mood and will give you a slap on the wrist for this. He's cool…for an old man. When Zoey and I French kissed on live TV once, Zoey swore up and down that we would get in trouble for that, but he just pulled us off to the side at our next contest and said to the two of us to just make sure that our affection doesn't get any further than that."

"Yeah," Zoey interjects, "but the problem with that line of reasoning is that the only thing we did was kiss. We didn't curse someone out by calling them a motherfucker or beat them up on national—no, _worldwide_ television. I think that that is a bit more…severe than smooching, but we'll see." Patting Dawn on the near shoulder, Zoey gives the teen her final word of advice. "Keep your head up, Dawn, and when you finish, just forget everything else and get prepared for your appeal tonight. Okay?"

"Thanks Zoey and I'll see you two later. Have fun, guys!"

Kenny was about to open his mouth and say something related to the reason why they are with Holly and Conway, but his girlfriend gave him a 'say anything and I will kill you' look. He instead opts to say that he and Zoey would do their best with the department of recreation in not as many words. They watch Dawn go inside and wish nothing but the best for their friend in her meeting.

The instant the door closes to the office, Zoey bluntly asks her sweetheart, "Do you think something big will go down?"

"Maybe," he chuckles. "Then again, Contesta might just tell her to not let it happen again given the magnitude of the event. This _is _the Grand Festival, after all. Could you imagine the backlash that would occur if a top coordinator like Dawn was suspended because of what happened earlier with Drew?"

"It would be like Armageddon for the television networks. Let's not forget that," Holly chimes in. Walking next to her is Conway with quite the smile on his face. "This is something that I kind of know about personally. I remember about two years ago I was set to compete against another trainer who I won't mention by name. He ended up getting into some trouble with gambling before we were supposed to have our match. The networks and advertisers, who essentially run the coordinating and training tournaments because they are the ones who are shelling out the money, had no idea how to handle it given the touchy subject of sports and betting. He had a big match with _me_, of all people, right after he admitted to gambling to the execs. But…it was crazy. I didn't find out until later that our big time match was tape-delayed so that the production team could pipe in cheers in case the audience there booed him and the sport's image would not be put into question. We all lost money over it and…it was just a big embarrassment for all sides involved."

"Funny, I read the trade magazines for coordinating all the time," Zoey responds. "I never heard anything about a gambling scandal a year ago."

"Well, it got squashed very quickly," says the oldest of the four. "Something like that coming out would cripple the sport. What they did was suspend him for the very vague charge of 'conduct unbecoming to a pokemon trainer,' which, quite frankly, could mean anything."

"You're right," Kenny interjects. Desperate to change the subject and get down to business, he continues, "We don't need any Pete Rose's on top of the characters already in this sport. Okay, now that everyone is here, I think we should go over this plan I thought of earlier. Someone tipped me off to this great all you can eat buffet near the outskirts of the city. Instead of spending so much of that money on our food, we can conserve, eat there, and then while you go shopping for the condoms, lubrications and whatever else you want, we'll head back to our hotel in room 832 and get the party started. Does that sound all right to you guys?"

No one disagrees or says anything about the new proposal and after a few seconds, Conway tells Kenny that he likes it and wants to do it. "Do I have to give you back the one hundred dollars?"

"Well, unless the two of you have already bought condoms and the like, no. And even then, I won't bug you about the change. Is that a deal?"

"I can't think of anything better, so okay," Holly quips. "Are we going right now?"

"Why, got something better planned?" Zoey slyly questions.

"No, just wondering."

"Very well," says the Twinleaf coordinator. "It's time to get this show on the road!" he exclaims. Afterwards, Kenny hooks both of his arms and holds Zoey with one arm to his left and Conway with the other arm to his right. Holly anchors the right side of this line as they make their way out of the Slateport Stadium and to the buffet in question.

* * *

With the female runner from earlier opening the door for Dawn, she enters into a large office backstage. This runner then makes her way out of the closed door meeting at the behest of her boss through the door at the other end of the room leaving the Sinnoh coordinator standing alone in this makeshift office. At the main desk, she can see Contesta sitting down, but in front of the desk facing the Pokemon Contest Director is a person she did not expect to see and the last individual she wanted to see.

Looking up to Contesta with her face scrunched and her mood skewed, she inquires, "Sir, forgive me but I thought that this was a one on one meeting. Why is Drew here?"

"Miss Berlitz, please have a seat," he counters, not really paying any attention to what the young woman in front of him just said. Just in front of the desk are two very large, leather chairs. Currently in the chair to the left of Contesta and to the right of Dawn watching just behind is Drew. Given her current position in the eyes of executives and higher ups within the sport, she really is not in a position to argue something as rudimentary as a seating arrangement. Without any response or call for Contesta to answer her question, she makes the sprint to her seat in the hopes that it will end early and she will not have to spend a great amount of time with the person next to her.

Once firmly placed in her seat, Raoul begins his statement to the two top coordinators in front of him. He sternly says, "I really need to get back to appeals because, as you know, that is my job here at this and all other Grand Festivals. It is not to babysit you when you have your lover's spats." Then, once it seemed like the director was about to get things rolling in his speech, a loud beep reverberates through the office.

Acting quickly to silence whatever object is making the noise is Drew, much to the surprise of the other two people inside of the room. Perturbed, Contesta asks the offender, "Don't you think now would be a great time for you to not have your cell phone on, sir?" While Drew pulls out the high-tech device, he hears even more chastising from his executive superior. "I could punish you just for that. I _should_ punish you just for that, you know?"

"May I just take a few minutes and answer this? It's a family member and it could be an emergency."

Sighing, although to some ears it sounded a lot like growling, Contesta answers, "You have five minutes, and then come back here immediately. I'll have you know that right now, you are treading on extremely thin ice at the moment, Master Emerson. You and Miss Berlitz are both going to be severely punished for that…incident in the press room earlier."

"Yes, sir," he replies while standing up, walking in the direction where Dawn came from and opening the door to the walk through area near the tunnel entrance. Hitting the green button on his phone, he brings it to his ear. "What do you want, Dad? I'm in a meeting right now and I can now say that I am officially in the doghouse."

"Drew, listen to me," his father says almost urgently. He talks with his son while sitting in his office, which provides a crystal clear view of the Saffron City skyline from one of the highest floors in the tallest skyscraper in that area of the Kanto region. "Please just listen to me carefully and then you can do what you want after that. I know I was not the best dad in the world. As a matter of fact, I absolutely sucked at it. Yes, I provided you with a great house, whatever you wanted materially and the like. There is only one thing I did wrong and it defeats the purpose of all the things I did in the name of trying to make the lives of you and your older sisters better. I did not give you me, Drew, and I can't tell you how sorry I am for that. I worked and I was the provider for the family, and your mother was the nurturer. I thought that that would be okay, but it is not okay."

"What are you saying, Dad?" he vexingly interjects.

"I'm saying that I've sat back long enough giving you compliments and telling you things like 'congratulations', 'good luck to you with your son' and 'great job'. You fathered—and that's the correct word to use at this point; you fathered a child behind your girlfriend's back. You acted so…cavalierly at the podium, I wondered about you. I wanted to know if you were okay. You showed no emotion whatsoever when Dawn rightfully ran down your ineptness as far as being a dad to Damien."

"Look, I know I am not…the best person to speak to you on this. When you were growing up, I had two loves. One was your mother and the other one was my work. Going to the office everyday was my…escape from the real world and the real problems in my life. Being a corporate executive gave me a portfolio and liquid assets that people dream about at night, but that didn't come without a cost. I lost my wife, my family and my kids because I wanted to be a big success and everything else got put on the backburner."

"But damn it, Drew, you're doing the exact same thing right now that I did and you probably don't even know it," says a very emotional Mr. Emerson. "You planned to pay the mother of your child fifty thousand dollars a year so she would stay home and take care of _your_ responsibility and you could keep coordinating without anyone knowing any better! Fortunately, Solidad proved to have more sense than one would gather from this crock deal you made with her some months back. I don't get…you know I didn't even…it's almost like you sold your child! That's what it sounds like to me, Drew; it sounds like you sold your responsibility to Damien's mother. I never did anything like that."

"He's in good hands with Solidad, dad!" Drew attempts to explain to his father. "It's not like I'm denying the child like you see on daytime television ad nauseum. I know that Damien is mine. I'm not handing him off to some monster! He's with his mother!"

"Drew, I wanna ask you something and give me an honest answer."

"Yes?"

"Tell me, what did Damien do wrong?"

Scoffing before saying "Dad," Drew is suddenly interrupted by his father.

"No, I wanna know what your son—my grandson did to deserve being treated like this?" The line is quiet like a mouse for a second until Drew's father tells him to, "Take your time, son. I know I have a lot of time to make up for not being the best dad in the world, but I can't even call you a dad, son. You don't deserve the title, because you are not acting like one. So tell me; what did Damien do wrong?"

Drew is boxed out in this conversation. He knows what the answer is and it pains him to say it. The truth hurts. "He didn't do anything," he whispers.

"What was that?"

"Damien didn't do anything wrong, dad!" he reiterates, being careful to not repeat what he said too loudly. Then, uncharacteristic of the Drew that Dawn and the rest of television land saw, his voice starts to break as he finally admits under the pressure of his father's words, "I was scared, dad. Look, 'like father, like son' is a bullshit excuse, pardon my language, but I thought that just providing him with everything around that he needed or wanted would be enough; it's just like you told me a few minutes ago. That's why I gave Solidad the money. That's why I worked and left him with her. I didn't know if I was cut out to do it. I didn't want to ruin Damien in any way."

Yet another pause on the other end of the line causes father to play the rare role of 'daddy'. "Drew, are you listening to me?"

"Yes, sir," he speaks softly. His voice no longer sounds like it is breaking.

"Do you know what will ruin Damien more than perhaps anything else in the world?" Not bothering to wait for an answer, Mr. Emerson says, "His daddy not being there. That's it. Just be there, provide and…I won't lie and tell you that everything else will work out, but the chances of you ruining him go down quite a bit. You can be scared, but not for long. You have a responsibility, son. Don't make the same mistakes raising Damien that I did raising you. Think about it; you have a son! Say it, Drew."

"I have a son."

"Louder!" commands his father.

"I have a son!"

"Yes, and you need to take care of business now! Not just with your son, but with everyone else involved in your life. That's what growing up is about, Drew. In a nutshell, that's all that you need to do. Now, you said you had business to take care of with Contesta?"

After a pause, Drew answers, "I didn't exactly say that to you in this conversation, but…yes. I do have a meeting with him. As a matter of fact, I took this phone call while we were in the middle of my talks with the man. I thought I would just delay the inevitable for a moment, but then came your call and your message, dad. You're right. I gotta wake up and take responsibility or my own might live to resent me later in life."

"That's what I want. I'll talk to you later, son."

"Okay, dad. Take care now," Drew speaks as he hits the 'END' button on his cellular phone. With a different attitude than when he exited the office, he goes back into the stadium office to meet the waiting and somewhat impatient stares of both Contesta and Dawn.

"Are we all ready to try this again, Master Emerson?"

Taking the seat which he had sat in just a few minutes earlier, he answers, "Yes, sir. I am. There will be no more distractions from me from this point forward. I promise you."

"Very well," Contesta states before continuing his time with two of the top coordinators in the entire pokemon world. "I want you two to know without mincing any words that I am _extremely _disappointed in both of you. Whatever problems you might have between the two of you did not need to be settled in front of the world like they were. If you want to beat each other up, I'll call some folks and we'll see if you can get on the next mixed martial arts pay-per-view. But you won't do it on my time or my dime. You're almost adults, so both of you better shape up and I mean soon. Now both of you will be taking part in the Grand Festival and all its activities this weekend and whether you win or you lose, you will have a lot of time to think about it." Pausing, Contesta prepares himself for the announcement he is about to make. Given the gravity of the situation it pains him to do this, but he knows that it needs to be done. "After tomorrow's final…both of you are going to be suspended from all sanctioned Pokemon Contests for the next six months."

"What?" Drew and Dawn question in unison.

The female coordinator even gets up from her seat and asks, "Suspended? For what?"

Raising his eyebrows at the teen girl, he answers, "Do I need to pull out the tape of you and show you, Miss Berlitz? Sit down, please. I am not finished." Sighing, Dawn concedes to her superior and positions her posterior into the cushioned chair once more. She and Drew attentively listen to the additional words "We are going to put this behind us right here and right now. That means no talking about what occurred in the press room to the media, acting civilized while in the eye of the cameras and just dealing with it. If you break any of these rules, I do have the power to extend your suspension to a term of one full year. The two of you are some of the best in this sport and it hurts me to do this, but there is just no way in which I can let this slide. How would we look if I let this slide? Now do you two have anything else to say?"

Neither Drew nor Dawn opens their mouth to speak. The latter thought it would be a good idea to at least plead her case to the director as to why she lashed out in the way she did, but she doubted that Contesta would even care about any of the underlying circumstances.

Hearing nothing from the duo in front of him, the man who is often called Raoul has one final request of the two coordinators. "Now both of you shake hands."

"I beg your pardon, sir?"

"This is part of the deal, Master Emerson," Contesta explains. "Remember, you have to show me that a stunt like what happened in front of the press earlier will not happen again. Now shake hands and you may leave. Drew, you will ready yourself for tomorrow's elimination rounds and Dawn, you will get yourself set for your appeal in a couple of hours." Hesitating, both Drew and his ex do not heed the words of Contesta. Even after being suspended for six months each, his words are not ringing in their heads clearly. Noticing that he is not getting anywhere with this, the senior official of the Grand Festival decides to take another step in the resolution process; threats. "I should let the two of you know that if you do not do what I tell you to right now, you can be charged with insubordination and have your licenses taken away for up to two years. So, it's your choice; you can shake hands and take your medicine for six months, or you can keep your pride and find something else to do for a living."

The idea of not being able to do what they want for the next two years did not appeal to either of them at all. In this vein, both decide to put their very real differences aside for this one moment and grip each other's right hands while remaining in their seats. For some reason, both of them hold onto the handshake longer than either of them expected. The duo now realizes that they are on probation for their actions and must make an impression to get their reputations back with the head of Pokemon Contests. By and large, the handshake did not have any feelings behind it whatsoever…from either side. It was done for show, bottom line, and done to keep Contesta happy and make sure that their punishment does not go deeper than it needs to.

For the first time in this entire conversation, a smile appears on the face of Raoul Contesta, who gets what he wanted from Drew and Dawn and now sees no other reason to keep them confined in this space. As the aforementioned coordinators let go of the handshake, he lets both of them know, "That's all I wanted to see, you two. No more screw-ups and you will be fine, but after this event, you will not be allowed to take part in other contests and Grand Festivals until September 14th and after tomorrow, you will have to hand over your licenses directly to me. Is that clear?"

"Yes, sir," they both answer.

"Very good," Contesta says. "You are both free to go, but Dawn? I will say that appeals are winding down at the moment. Are you sure you just don't wanna stay here and watch…however many are left?"

"Okay, I'll do that. Thank you, Contesta," she answers as she watches Drew walk through the exit door which led to the backstage area. Though she could care less what he was going to do from that point forth, she could not help but notice the minor and intricate differences in Drew's mood after he came back from the phone call with the alleged family member.

He seemed to be in a great deal of thought throughout the second part of their talk. It was like he had something else on his mind the entire time, yet kept his focus on the meeting. One curious mind would have to wonder what is causing this and make an effort to understand, but Dawn will not be that individual. Once more, she is beyond the point of caring about Drew for another fraction of a second.

* * *

Though she really does not need them in her club box one or two levels up from the arena floor of the stadium, a top coordinator watches a lot of the action through binoculars. Marina Del Raymond does this as a means of keeping her mind away from the incident by the tunnel. She saw the Marins for the first time in nearly three years. As if that did not resonate within her a great deal, she also saw Kelly for the first time in just over two years.

After the confrontation with Kelly and her parents, she, along with her boyfriend Jimmy, went back to check out some more appeals before hers scheduled for 7:30pm. Jimmy did not believe for one second that Marina made some sort of mistake in her encounter with the Marins and while they walked back to their personal club box for the weekend, he asked her several times if she actually did have some sort of a relationship with the three people in question, including who he correctly assumed was the daughter of the two adults.

Marina, in an attempt to save face and not reveal her wrongdoings towards Jimmy, repeatedly asked him to not to bring up the issue again because she insists on not knowing the people from earlier. He did not get anywhere with Marina during this time and chooses to let it go for now, as he is now handling some business in the restroom.

As the self-proclaimed Pokemon Idol watches and hopes that her issue is now a closed one and she can soon proceed to add yet another Ribbon Cup to her growing collection, the hopes seemed dashed as she feels a hand on her left shoulder. Turning around, she finds Jimmy but can not help noticing that he does not greet her with a smile or any indication thereof on his face.

"Uh, Jimmy…"

"Look, I've been doing some…thinking," he admits. "Maybe I was…a little hard on you earlier. It probably was a big mistake that you made and…I'm sorry if I might have snapped then."

Consider that bullet dodged. Marina honestly did not expect her boyfriend to go that route, but she was nevertheless thankful for his actions at this time.

"It's just…well, I know you haven't forgotten from about three years ago," Jimmy explains. "We separated during that time because you wanted to go to Hoenn and I wanted to travel through Kanto. We almost broke up over that, but I'm thankful we were able to talk through those differences while we were apart." Now, gently grabbing Marina from behind by her shoulders, he continues, saying, "Those six months were painful for me, but after we settled our differences over the phone, I relished every day we got to talk and could not wait until we ended our long-distance relationship for good."

"You thought that the fact that I didn't want to talk to you about them was me not keeping to our promise of honesty, right?"

"That's right. I figure…if you're being honest, you have nothing to hide. I'd be angrier if you just kept anything from me and not so much for what you did. You know that, right?"

"Right," Marina affirms as she checks the clock one more time. Now showing a time of 6:13pm, her appeal is a little more than an hour away.

Anything to get Kelly and her family away from her thoughts is a blessing for the young woman, including being an idol and example for most young girls in coordinating.

* * *

"Harley?" Max yells as he opens the door to the room they both share at the Slateport Milton hotel. Looking around, he tries to find some indication of his boyfriend's whereabouts in the room, to no avail. Frustrated he kicks the door, which leads into the bathroom. It is here that Max finds a note posted on the bathroom mirror. Pulling the tape from the glass, he reads the short note, saying…

_Max,_

_If you've gotten this, then that means that I am long gone. I have gone to my parent's house. Don't you care come to see me, you little bastard. You lost that right after you decided that kissing other guys was a good idea while I was in that bathroom. How stupid can you be? Well, you'll have a lot of time to figure it out on your own!_

_Unloved,_

_Harley_

Bringing the hand carrying the note down to his sides, Max also brings down his head. The words in the note hurt, that much is true, but nowhere near as much as the fact that in some respects, Harley was right. He could have prevented much of this heartache if he made the choice to avoid Kenny and his amorous tendencies if only for that moment. He could have found a way out of the kiss, but he did not. It is nothing to dwell on now, because the deed has been done. 'All that's left to do is head to Harley's parent's home in the city and fix this,' he thinks. Afterwards, though, the young teen has to shudder when he considers everything he knows to be fact. Harley, who is age twenty-five and has not lived with his parents in over fifteen years, went to his parents to get away from him.

Max has only met his boyfriend's folks three times, and those three times rank as three of the oddest moments in his life, without a doubt. Both of Harley's parents are staunch practitioners of New Age techniques in parenting and work as doctors in their own office in the fields of psychology and psychiatry. Their home is one of the largest penthouses in the entire Hoenn region and their conversations often consist of methodology in parenthood that is largely unheard of and unique in design. Hearing them talk leaves him with an uncomfortable feeling as they run down all of the reasons why parents are failing their children pulling absolutely no punches along the way. Not to mention that they are ultra nice and while in their presence, anyone could get away with murder and they would still not raise their voices above the level of 'outdoor'.

"I'll be _damned_ if I'm gonna be doing this alone," Max speaks. The next thing he does after taking the note with him is leave the room of the hotel is head down the hallway and to yet another room on the eighth floor.

He walks quicker than normal as he wants to get this mess settled quicker than normal. He finally finds his destination at room 832 and then, he knocks on the wooden surface, commanding, "All right, Kenny! Come out here, now!" Waiting for a response he hears absolutely nothing. He hears no rustling from the other side and no sounds of any voices, so he decides to knock on the door again. "Damn it, Kenny! Get your ass out here! I believe we have some things to discuss!"

"Max, what are you doing?" asks a voice in the hall. Turning around, he does not expect to find one of his oldest buddies with his girlfriend nearby.

"Brock? Lucy?" he questions. "What are _you_ two doing here?"

"We were going out and we wanted to ask Zoey and Kenny if they wanted to tag along," answers Pike Queen Lucy, "but I don't think he and Zoey are here based on what I just saw. You sounded pretty pissed off at the door there. You wanna talk about it?"

"Well, that bastard Kenny kissed me thinking that I was Conway or something screwed up like that. Harley saw me, blew up and went to his parent's house, and…they don't like me that much," he concludes, fibbing in order to get some support from the older couple. "I wanted Kenny to come with me personally and explain himself and his actions to Harley but he's not here, as you can tell and I don't have his cell number either."

Words are failing both Brock and Lucy at this time. In less than thirty seconds, Max's story renders them speechless and incapable of translating their thoughts into speech. All the two can do is look at each other and wonder if what they just heard was correct. Max just said that Kenny kissed him thinking it was Conway, and Harley caught them in the act and confronted him right afterwards. So many questions arise from just this. One of which is why in the world Kenny is kissing Conway while everyone and their mother knows that he is with Zoey. Not one of the things Max told them made any sense and the words still refuse to come.

"Look," Max speaks, "if you guys do this for me, I will be _eternally_ grateful. Would you come with me so I can visit Harley's parents and get this mess straightened out? He lives in the city, like…five or ten minutes away. His folks give me the creeps and I always get more than a bit nervous when we talk. I promise it won't be long and you can go back to your plans. Please? I'm begging you two! I'd ask my parents, but they are with Kelly as she gets her hand checked."

"Hold it," Brock interjects. "Harley's folks give you the creeps?"

"It's…very complicated."

"This whole story of yours is complicated," Lucy chimes in, "but there's no need to be dramatic about it. You're obviously taking the steps to right this wrong and I'm inclined to help you out."

"But Lucy, this is…"

"Brock, come on! For your friend—for _our_ friend, let's do this! They live right here, and the night is still young. This shouldn't take too long." Stroking her hand through his hair, Lucy asks her "What do you say?"

'Oh, God. Why does she do this to me?' he questions within. There is no way he can say 'no' to her, not when she is in flirtation mode. "Well, all right. We'll do it for you, Max."

"Thanks, you guys," he exclaims giving Lucy a hug and Brock a quick handshake. "Like I said, Harley is not that far from here. His folks live in Hammonds Tower."

This bit of information causes the couple to do a double take. "Hammonds Tower?" they ask.

"That's one of the most expensive spots of all the regions!" Brock states. "Damn, Harley's parents must be loaded in for them to live there!"

"They are," Max responds, not really wanting to say much more. Leading the way to the elevators, he says, "Now let's go. We can definitely walk from here to there. I'll get Harley back, you can go back to having fun, and I can go about the severe beating of one Kenneth Michael Treanoir IV."

* * *

A/N: For your information, Kenny's last name is pronounced Tren-no-are. It's supposed to have French origins. More on this later.

The next few chapters have some humorous stories with the swinging four. I will warn you that they may be shorter than the last three. Plus much more on Marina and Kelly's relationship! Leave feedback whether signed or anonymous for this and other chapters! I wanna know what everyone thinks of the story at the thirty chapter mark!

Until next time, it's been Rave!


	31. Fun and Fun With Names

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Dawn is told to meet with Contesta while in an embrace with Zoey and Kenny, who decide to have their meal at a buffet in town with Holly and Conway. In the meeting with Contesta, which also had Drew in attendance, both offenders were suspended for the next six months. During the talk, Drew had a conversation with his father on the phone warning him to not make the same mistakes he made during fatherhood. Marina looks at appeals to take her mind off the Marin family and Jimmy apologizes for goading his girlfriend into a confession. Max finds a note from Harley telling him that he has gone home to his parent's house. He plans to have Kenny explain his actions to Harley, but he can't be found. He instead convinces Lucy and Brock to come with him to confront Harley's folks.

NOTE: Over the next several chapters, Kenny, Zoey, Conway and Holly will discuss different topics in their lives and say a lot of things before they go back for sex. So do you want them to talk about something in particular? Well, let me know! More details can be found at the end of this chapter.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 31- Fun and Fun With Names)

* * *

Out in the window, the sun fades off into the distance making its way to all points west. If the big orb could see, then it would be treated to quite a show. In the room of one of the finest pokemon trainers of the past decade there are two, and the two are quite close at the moment adding an unfamiliar amount of weight to the bed of the trainer from Pallet.

Neither of them particularly cares about this, though. The sun does not matter, the fact that day is about to become night does not matter and, perhaps most important, inhibitions do not matter. They really just want to be close. It has been such a long time, in their minds, since they got to kiss without either one's parents getting in the way and this time will not go to waste. Paul would rather pack up and head back home before that happens as he looks at the truly handsome specimen below him.

After sitting down to watch May's appeal about an hour ago, Delia, Ash and Paul cheered on the efforts of the coordinator they helped train for this moment. Few people in the town were happier than they were to see that the efforts of 'Nata' and May grew to create a fantastic appeal that everyone in the arena and those watching at home were amazed to see. Following the appeal both trainers knew that there was not much more competition until later that evening, so they retired to Ash's bed for some downtime to relax and enjoy one another's company.

Ash grins like a loon as Paul allows a similar action to arrive on his face. The two dressed only in their boxers and socks have been at it in their make out session for almost ten minutes now with Paul, as usual, taking the lead and engaging in foreplay to get a certain message across. He knew more than his partner did about the effect it had. It was evident on the other guy's face.

From tracing the muscles on his six-pack, to whispering dirty things in both of his ears while at the same time blowing into said ears all the way up to giving some other parts of his boyfriend some mild stimulation, most people already would have gotten the hint and would have proceeded into the act of love making. Unfortunate for Paul, Ash is not 'most people' and often needs to be told things explicitly to get the hint…like right now.

Rolling his eyes as he kneels above Ash, he asks him what he hoped the young man on the bottom would have gotten. "Will you make love to me, Ash?" is the question that comes out of Paul's mouth. He asks it as calmly as his hormones will muster in the heat of the moment.

Sighing, he admits "I want to…"

"Then what's stopping you?"

"My mother, genius," he answers sarcastically. "I know we've been together for the past year now and we've been nothing but honest with mom about…most of our relationship."

"You think she doesn't know that you're sexually active?"

"No, she just thinks that I'm having a lot of fun." Before Paul can open his mouth to rebut those claims, Ash cuts him off, saying, "And I don't mean that kind of fun, either…even though that is a hell of a lot of fun."

Pointing his right index finger directly in the other male's face, he teasingly warns him, "You just saved yourself a whole lot of punishment mister!"

"Define…punishment?"

Not wanting to leave Ash in the dark about what he meant, Paul comes back down to his boyfriend's level and explains the definition of consequences through a whisper. Going back to his previous position, the star trainer from Sinnoh listens as Ash explains, "That's not punishment. That's the fun I was talking about a minute ago; at least the part that has a lot of sex attached to it. It doesn't matter, though. I told you before we decided to spend these next couple of months living together that we had to be careful about these things. My mom will hear us if we have the fun or punishment that you talked about and then we have to answer all these embarrassing questions."

"Ash, please," Paul simply retorts. "You're mom knows that you're having sex with me because I told her."

"You did what?" he exclaims, sitting up from the bed and knocking heads with Paul causing him to fall off the bed and onto the floor.

"Ah, goddamn it, Ash!" Paul screams.

"How could you have told her something so personal?"

"Aw, come the fuck on! She was gonna find out eventually!" Paul's face softens when he sees Ash looking very downtrodden while sitting on the side of the bed and lightly shaking his head at the thought of his mother knowing what he and Paul love to do when no one was around to bother them.

Sitting next to his beau, Paul clarifies some matters that he feels are of great importance to Ash. "Okay, it was around mid-February; a month ago. I got up in the middle of the night to get some water and saw your mom at the kitchen table. Neither of us could sleep, so we decided to start conversation. We talked, and the subject of sex came up after a while. She never asked me point blank if we had sex but after a while, it became clear to me that she either knew or had a feeling." Hearing this news causes a change in Ash's demeanor not seen since he found out that his mom knew of his sex life. It was no longer a feeling of embarrassment going through Ash. Rather, he is experiencing more curiosity than anything else. "That night, she dropped these subtle hints and said things like, 'Hey, I'm sure you two can find a lot to do while I'm at the market or running errands'. It didn't take long for me to put two and two together. Believe me; your mom surprised me when she said that it was okay for you and me to do it as long as we use protection…"

"Which we do," Ash interjects.

"But then again," Paul continues, "We're adults, Ash, so it shouldn't surprise me."

"So just so I understand you and mom completely, we can have protected sex…"

"Oh and I forgot to mention this but…well, she said that if I ever broke your heart that my family, friends and the police would not know the first place to look and find me..._if_ I were in one piece. She said that they would take care of me really well."

"Who is 'they'?"

"I didn't ask," Paul answers, shaking his head. "I just promised your mother that I wouldn't break your heart in any way. But…we are allowed to have sex in her house provided that we are not too loud. This includes disturbing her sleep or waking the neighbors. Sound good to you?"

Much to the surprise of the violet-haired trainer with the once gruff demeanor, Ash wraps his arms around him and puts on the squeeze. "Are you kidding me?" he asks. "This is the best! I was worried about this, but…now I have no reason. I just wonder why in the world she didn't sit down with me and say something?"

"She knew you'd come to her eventually. You practically tell her everything, but she knew that this would be different, for obvious reasons."

"And she was right."

"Hey, boys!" Delia calls from downstairs.

Going outside of Ash's room, he and Paul call back to the first floor to hear that Delia will be going out for about an hour to buy some ingredients for snacks during tomorrow's party.

"Okay," they respond.

"Have fun!" Delia says as she laughs her way out of the house not bothering to hear an answer from either of them because she already knows what will happen while she is out.

Once the door to the Ketchum house closes, Paul pats Ash on his bare shoulder. "Well, you heard what your mom said, so I'll ask you again. Ash, will you…" Paul can not finish what he asked because he got shoved by the young man in question onto the bed. Very rarely did Ash ever take control of a situation like this one ever since their encounters began but in this case, as the trainer from Pallet jumps onto the bed and his boyfriend, he is willing to do a little give and take.

Besides, that is what adds the sizzle and the spice to their life, thereby making it quite…fun.

* * *

Holding the door open for Zoey, Holly and finally Conway in that order, Kenny welcomes them to the buffet he mentioned back at the stadium a few minutes ago. The place is a large restaurant, which is simple in its design. There's no real theme to it because a gimmick or hook of that sort is not needed. The four teens along with everyone else comes to this hangout, known as 'The Stuff Stop', to gorge on food of near-high quality for a respectable price and take part in as much nourishment as their bodies will allow. Fitting over 300 people, it is one of the largest buffets any of them have ever seen and weary from a very hectic day, it appears to be the spot in Slateport City to just pig out without care.

Due to the fact that he has the money, Conway walks up to the cashier's counter first to let the attendant know that he will be paying for four adults this evening.

Putting the information into the computer register, the employee with the name of 'Zaria' tells the young male in front of him, "That'll be ninety-two dollars and forty-one cents." Conway does not cringe at the thought of paying so much for a meal because he's not paying the money for said dinner out of his own pocket.

He pulls out the one hundred dollar bill Kenny gave him earlier and gives it to Zaria, adding, "And don't worry about the change. You keep it." After Zaria thanks him, they go to seat themselves at one of the tables in the buffet that is about two-thirds to capacity for the evening. The more experienced pair of Kenny and Zoey would prefer to have a table or booth away from a lot of crowds, particularly those with several children nearby. Even though they are frank, they are also quite aware that many people would not like to hear what these four say in their discussion.

As they search together for the perfect spot, Kenny hears his name being called from someone not that far away. Turning in all directions, the most promiscuous of the four teenagers sees one of his true friends for life in the buffet.

"Leona? Is that you?" he asks.

"In the flesh, Kenny!"

"My God! How've you been?" he asks as Leona joins him in an embrace.

"Not too bad. I took a break from training to get a look at the Grand Festival. Dawn is competing in this one and I thought I'd catch it."

Letting go of the hug, he waits for Zoey to get in a hug and a greeting with Leona before saying, "Well, you know that Dawn recently broke up with Drew, right?"

"Yeah, I was in my hotel room earlier and saw that…brawl. If you ask me, it's the best thing that could have happened to her. Not to mention she more than put the beat down on that little S.O.B. I loved every second of it, man."

"As I'm sure you did," Kenny introduces his old friend to his new friends, saying, "Holly? Conway? I'd like you to meet my good friend from grammar school, Leona Darcy. Leona, this is…"

"I know these guys; Holly Rockwell and Conway Ericsson," she says with the sliest of smiles. As both trainers nod at Leona's correct identification, she reveals, "We competed against each other in the Sinnoh league, and I faced both of them one time each during past tournaments and won both times."

"Wingull and all of my other flyers had no chance against her, and that's why I lost," defends the older girl.

"But you put up a hell of a battle against my Manectric nonetheless, Holly. Well, nice to see you guys here. I know you'll enjoy the food here. I need to get a third plate of this stuff! Enjoy!"

"Thank you!" they all say in unison as they spend a few more seconds and finally find their table of choice. It is a booth, and is away from a lot of the commotion nearest to the different buffet stations so that they can talk about whatever they want. Placing their receipt there on the table and claiming it as their own, they make their way to the different stations. Zoey and Conway immediately rush to the quiet salad bar while Kenny and Holly go to the meats to fill their first plate. Holly's initial main course is a large stack of prime rib with au jus and Kenny gets a whole chicken breast with cornbread and steamed okra.

"Holly," Kenny says while she gets a large heap of fried macaroni and cheese, "I don't mean to be rude when I say this, but…damn, girl! Where the hell do you put all that?"

Not thinking that there was anything wrong with what she was doing, she answers, "My stomach. Duh!"

Once Holly can no longer find any space on her plate, he says, "I just had to ask," before he takes his plate back to the booth where each one's partners are already sitting down and eating their salads; Zoey has a large chef's salad and Conway is eating a Caesar salad. This does not sit well with Kenny in the least bit. "Zoey! Couldn't you wait for us?"

"You guys were at that meat station for a long time," she responds before taking another bite of her salad.

"Both of you stop, now. Neither of you are starving. At the very least, you could wait so we could all say grace." Turning to Conway, Kenny asks him, "If your mother were here, would she let you just dig in like that?"

"Uh…actually yes, though she wouldn't care either way. I'm not a Christian, but I did say a silent grace beforehand. Religion doesn't necessarily have to play a part in it."

"Well…yeah. You're right about that one." Sitting down with Zoey while Holly takes a seat with Conway, he asks the older guy another question. "Do you…belong to a religion?"

"My parents raised me as a Buddhist when I was young, but they have always been open to us kids finding our own philosophy of life no matter what. My brother Seth wants to follow Confucianism and my sister Jordan has shown interest in Scientology. Me…I still don't know. I follow Buddhism with my parents, though, so I have not converted yet."

"That's cool," Kenny answers as he gets a forkful of his okra. "I…I'm sorry I made a big deal out of it. Believe it or not, I am a born and raised Catholic and if I didn't say grace during school, the sisters of St. Frances would tear into me a new one…by the grace of God."

"Whoa, you just blew my mind right now," Conway comments while Holly starts to put a dent into her plate. "You're Catholic and go to mass and what not?"

"Every Sunday."

"And you have sex with other men and women whom you are not married to?"

"Yeah," he answers with no problem. "I'll put it this way; I am in no better or worse position in the eyes of God than anyone else. We are all sinners, but at least I am not the sinner who made a young boy or girl's life a living hell by molesting them when they could not consent to the act or understand what they were being forced to do."

Opening his mouth to protest in some fashion, Conway thinks things over and can not find anything to go against what the teen next to him just said. "Good point. Okay, no more on religion."

"Hold that thought, Conway," Zoey interjects, holding up her hand. "We've heard from you and Kenny, but Holly hasn't said anything." Hearing her name being called causes Holly to actually stop eating for once in the early minutes of the conversation. Looking up to Zoey, she is questioned on her choice in faith.

"I'll say it if you say it," she negotiates.

"All right. I don't mind saying that I'm Jewish."

This is the one thing that apparently could make Holly drop her fork down onto the table. "You're kidding me! I'm Jewish, too!"

"No freaking way!" Zoey counters.

"Well, where the heck do you think I get a name like 'Rockwell'?"

"It's just that…the name Holly is used so often for Catholic and other Christian girls. Believe me, enough times going to mass with Kenny in all the different cities and you see quite a bit of girls with your name."

"Well, there is a story behind that that I probably will tell you all before we head back to the hotel."

"Hold it, Holly," Kenny says, interrupting the two-girl powwow at the table. "Are you like Zoey in that you aren't an Orthodox Jew, because how you eat…is definitely not kosher."

"No, I'm not Orthodox," Holly clarifies. "I'm a Messianic Jew who believes that Jesus is the true messiah. And as far as the eating issue, I'm kinda like May in that sense. Now there's a girl who can eat, eat, eat and not gain a gram and I'm the same. The doctors told me that my metabolism levels are…not of this world. Even when I was...like six years old, I could eat more than my parents during some meals and I wouldn't gain weight."

"I'm officially jealous," Kenny admits. "But I'm curious as to how you got the name Holly. You said there was a story behind it, right?"

"You're right. Okay, the story goes like this. My mom was pregnant with me and much of her time was spent resting even though she was a working woman. It made her quite irritable at times. Dad told me as I got older that it was hard for him and my older siblings to care for her because carrying me to term was hard, but that's neither here nor there."

"It was December of 1990 when my mother started her ninth month carrying me and mom claims she didn't have time to think about names and such. Sure, my brothers, sisters and father had their input, especially when they found out that the newest addition would be a baby sister, but mom didn't really think about that. The holidays…were always depressing for my mom because she lost her mother during Chanukah. And she went to do some shopping in this very down mood with my dad. They came across these carolers who were singing 'Deck the Halls'."

Zoey raises her eyebrows when she hears that particular part of the story. Caroling one Christmas Eve with Kenny, she got to know that and other songs quite well. She had no problem with the name whatsoever, but the story seems to have some unique quirks in place that make it very cool.

"Hearing the carolers got my mother out of her funk. Christmas came a few weeks later and while she was in labor, mom whispered the song in her head to calm herself. Before she knew it, I came into the world on Christmas night of 1990 and she gave me the name Holly. Dad did get some say in the matter, because he wanted to call me Samantha. That's my middle name."

"And that is some story," Kenny chimes in. "I wish I had a name story like that. Mine is told better through all the people who had it before I did. I am Kenneth Michael Treanoir IV but if you claim to be a friend of mine, you will never call me that. Kenny will suffice. Capiche?"

"When I learned his full name, I couldn't believe it," Zoey explains. "Kings and Queens have not had such a lengthy generational rule over a name as his family has. He has a cousin who is the _sixth_ person in his family with the name and plans on making his son the seventh. And since we're on the subject of names, Kenny likes to try out these different nicknames for me whenever the inspiration hits him. Most of them only last as long as one of his lovers, but I've always liked the name Zoey Andrea Zarkowski. My dad is the one who named me after a couple of friends he knew from childhood named Zoë and Andrea. I consider them to be like my aunts, even though we aren't related. It's not as one of a kind as Holly's or as historical as Kenny's, but that's my story."

As Conway finishes the final bit of his salad, he does not notice the stares of three pairs of eyes glaring back at him wanting the trainer of horned pokemon to add his share to this name game of sorts. Looking up, the bespectacled teen knows that he is beat. With stories like Holly's to carry this conversation, he thought that the subject would be changed and everyone would move on to something else.

"Well?" Kenny directs to Conway.

"Well…what?"

"Well, everyone has a story about their name. What about you?"

"Uh," he replies while fiddling with his glasses, "I really don't have one. My folks just thought that Conway was very creative."

"And…that is answer is false," Holly steps in. "Conway, drop the embarrassment and let them know! I think the people you're gonna do in about two hours have a right to know that Conway isn't even your real first name."

"Really?" Zoey intriguingly inquires.

"Nope! Why don't you tell them, Conway, or else I'll do it. They won't make fun of you for it…much."

"All right, damn it! That's enough!" he exclaims, unnecessarily getting the attention of the other patrons for his outburst. Embarrassed, Conway turns red and apologizes for that sudden streak of a slur. "Holly's right. If we _are _gonna be that intimate, the least that I could do is tell you my real name. It's…Loren and Conway is actually my middle name."

A pause and silence confuse the older male for a bit. "So?" Kenny asks him. "That's a perfectly good name for a boy! Loren spelled L-O-R-E-N is a form of 'Lorenzo'. I know other people with that name because they're my parent's friends."

"I think it's cool," Zoey quips. "Girls notice you when you have a name like that, too. So you are Loren Conway Ericsson, right?"

"Yeah. The 'Loren' part and the 'Conway' part of my name came from my folks living in the Southwest United States for work while Jordan was still an infant and really doing like the Romans if they were in Rome. The name Conway was quite popular in that part of the country as a nickname and Loren came from the classic series 'Gunsmoke'. So when they came back to Sinnoh, they thought it fit quite well for whatever reason, but I always got the feeling that it was in memory of the great time they had in…Texas. I should let you know that I haven't gone by 'Loren' since I was about four or five, Zoey, and even though it is my legal first name, most of the people who I talk to have no clue."

"I'm just so glad that you could get that off your chest before we take this next step," the younger teen states in a campy mode.

"Heck, I'm glad that you and Zoey didn't laugh about it."

"Why? It's just a name!" he says regaining his seriousness. "You didn't think I got made fun of for having the name Kenny? Zoey, give them two words."

Without missing a beat, Zoey says the words, "South Park," and it all seems to make perfect sense to the pair of virgin swingers with no further explanation.

"And for the record…I did get called 'Zoey 101' a lot, especially after Jamie Lynn got knocked up. In fact, that was one of Kenny's favorite pet names for me before we even became boyfriend and girlfriend."

"Oh, I bet that went over real well; like a cell phone going off in a murder trial."

"And just as serious, Conway," Kenny addendums. "Guys, I don't know about you, but I'm ready to get my next plate and then, if you have not noticed, I have more to talk about. Stick tight!" he says as his departing word of advice before making his way back to the meat station and to the lemon baked trout and steamed shrimp, thereby skipping the turf at least for now.

* * *

A/N: Chapter 32 might have THE most emotional moment of the story so far! I put two project updates aside so I could finish this before school. Stay tuned as it's not that far off at all!

PM me if you have a subject or topic you want Kenny, Conway, Holly and Zoey to talk about or leave it in your review, let me know why they should talk about this and I will get back to you about any more information needed to be discussed.

Until next time, this is Rave!


	32. The Wait is Over

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Paul and Ash enjoy some downtime and want to make love to each other, but Ash fears that his mother will find out that he is sexually active. Paul eventually reveals to him that his mother already knows that he and Ash have sex. When she leaves to run some errands, Ash pounces on Paul and begins his activities. Zoey, Kenny, Conway and Holly all go to the buffet in Slateport, meet up with Kenny's old friend Leona, and talk about a lot about family and background. Kelly learns that her right hand is broken and will need to be fitted for a cast for at least six weeks. May learns that Marina actually had a relationship with Kelly while she never officially broke up with Jimmy, which is what makes Kelly so mad at Marina.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 32- The Wait is Over)

* * *

The waiting is the hardest part, especially when this waiting is done in a place that can serve as a heartbreaker for most people who enter it. But with May by her side, Kelly has decided to not be petty about the process. One could say that she has made the choice to just grin and bear it for her sake as she is inside one of the doctor's offices awaiting the x-rays for her potentially broken right hand.

Walking into the non-urgent wing of the ER about half an hour ago along with each one's parents, they see a lot of the different spectators for the Grand Festival including fellow coordinators getting themselves and their physical problems checked out. Once Kelly signs up to get checked out at the front desk, she waits for her name to be called. When that happens, due to the fact that she is a minor but just barely one, she still has to get permission from her parents to allow May to be inside of the waiting room with her for the duration of the visit.

Permission is granted to the young couple and the elder Marins and Maples decide to head back to their hotels and get some rest knowing that their daughters will update them on the condition of Kelly's hand once they head back to the hotel. After the younger of the two lovers gets a visit from the doctor, she goes inside of another room for a few minutes and takes about five different pictures of her right hand to look over and determine what course of action to take for the injury. During this time, May, who brought a change of clothes, takes this time to go back into her more comfortable black sweat suit. No sooner than when Kelly goes for her x-rays does she come back and sit down near May after being told that she will have to wait some additional time for the plates to develop.

Both girlfriends have not said much to each other while they await the pictures as they come back from the darkroom. To May, who is sitting across the room from Kelly, it seems like her best friend is down in the dumps a bit from more than just a potentially broken hand. In fact, she is willing to bet her entire paycheck from this weekend's festivities that the situation with Marina's dishonesty might only be scratching the surface of her sweetheart's discontent.

She wishes that there was something she could do to make Kelly feel better, and decides to just talk. Smiling in her direction, she asks the lilac-haired girl, "It sucks, huh?"

In response to her bluntness, Kelly laughs for the first time in a very long time. It felt great in the face of everything else that has happened to laugh for its own sake. "Yeah. I hate this place so much, May, you would not believe. I had a lot of illnesses when I was younger and spent more time in here and other hospitals, doctor's offices and the like than I even care to remember. To be honest, I came here because you, my parents and your parents probably would not have had it any other way. They probably would have had to drag my ass here if I didn't say yes."

Feeling that Kelly is skirting an important issue, May says, "Yeah, we just want to make sure that you're all right. That's all. Most people hate hospitals. Hell, I hate them myself! I don't wanna be here as much as you do, but I come here whenever I need the help. There are people here that are willing to go the extra mile to give it to you…like me."

The girl with the hurt hand did not expect a comment like that and with a command of "Come again?" she asks exactly what her one and only meant.

"Well, I could tell when we thought we saw something with Zoey and the others earlier that it really got to you. When I found out that Marina was who you were talking about when you mentioned your ex-girlfriend, it didn't take long for me to put the pieces together. Marina and Jimmy have been together a very long time…with only a brief separation about three or four years ago where it was always stated in the media that neither of them ever broke up with one another. The reason why you hate cheating so much is not necessarily because Marina cheated on you, but that she dragged you into her problems and made you into 'the other woman'."

It is very apparent that May is hitting home with her hypothesis on the matter because during the time in which she relives the story of Kelly and Marina that she knows about, Kelly begins to tear up and become quite emotional. Given the circumstances involved few can blame her, but even fewer know exactly what happened to cause these strong feelings from within.

"You're right," she says through her tears. "Marina came through Lilycove three or four years ago to get some information on berries and how to make pokeblock. We hit it off quite well and I learned she came off a bad breakup with her boyfriend. That was the first lie. She said that she was tired of guys being pigs and…I confided in her the details of my sexuality and she showed some interest. I told her some things that I haven't even told my own mom and dad and still haven't. We became buddies and she worked around the shop as my apprentice while also traveling to different contest houses to get her five ribbons during the weekends. This friendship evolved into a romantic relationship and all the while I had no idea about her boyfriend, because I was not as familiar with any coordinators from the Johto region. Things, I thought, were going well for us. Then after a month together, I caught her on our couch talking with someone named Jimmy and the two of them were having a really intimate conversation that night."

"The next morning I confronted her at the breakfast table and asked her who she was talking to on the phone last night. Already knowing that it was Jimmy, I waited to catch her in a lie. She said it was her mother, and I was ready and waiting to…bring her down with my parents there to see it happen. She was so slick with her words, though. She said that I did not trust her, which was true but she never gave me a reason to trust her after finding her on the couch talking to Jimmy. Then she tried to put my intelligence to task by asking me, 'If I was seeing someone behind your back, would I be stupid enough to actually call that person while you and your parents are in the house?' It was horrible, and she got my parents to actually tell me that I was being delusional and just needed to relax and enjoy myself and being with Marina."

"Damn, she really fooled everyone if that's the case!" May exclaims. "How did you get everything out in the open and expose her?"

The thought of how her story with Marina came to an end is enough to make Kelly smile. "Ironically enough, she caught herself in a mistake. She defended herself by saying that she would never call someone she was cheating with inside my house with all of us in there. Well in this case, she didn't. While I was out getting some supplies for a project at Academy my parents were at home and caught her talking to Jimmy, the same person I confronted her earlier about, and she ended up screwing herself. They caught her while she was outside of the house one afternoon talking about how she can't wait to get her fifth ribbon and go back to him after the Grand Festival. The cat got her tongue really quickly and she left the house not even a half an hour later and did not come back. I saw her while I was walking back home to get back to work. She was…literally running on the city sidewalks with these two suitcases in her hand saying that something has come up and she has to leave immediately. I felt for her and wanted to know what it was but she would not give any details. That should have been a clue but I wasn't sure because after some time, I did cool off and actually was cordial to the bitch. She just said that she had to go home right away and that's exactly what she did."

Kelly has to take a break. If nothing else, stopping and regaining her composure is her best course of action at the moment. Once more, the tears flow from the eyes of the soon to be doctor as perhaps the saddest part of her saga with Marina is about to be retold through her words. "But when I went back home…I just had this feeling deep inside me that something wasn't right. I came into the house and saw my dad consoling mom and she just kept asking 'How could she do this to Kelly?' I asked them what's going on, and…dad told me everything. I was hysteric when I heard it; a part of me really did not want to think that it was actually true. At this point, though, it was very clear what happened. Marina got found out, left the house as quickly as she could so she would not have to explain herself and left our otherwise happy family in near shambles. We went to counseling and things got better for us, yet that piece of shit walks around contest houses and arenas like she has done nothing wrong."

"So in conclusion," Kelly continues, "it does suck. I know I shouldn't think these thoughts, but I wanna hurt her so badly, May. I mean it when I say I really want to hurt Marina and give her…at least some of the pain which she gave my family and me. Does that make me a bad person, May? Am I a bitch because I want revenge or, at the very least, for Marina to say something to me or show _some_ remorse for the things she did?"

"Not at all. Hell, I wanna hurt her too. I wanna ask her what would make her want to…betray you. Never mind the fact that I fell for you like no one else, the way you carry yourself with so much dignity, the work that you put in to become a great contributor to this world and the fact that you are who you are. At the end of the day, you are still a person and you did not deserve that from someone you claimed to love." Deeply sighing, May ponders an incident that has been on her mind since early this morning. "You know, I wanna thank you for being honest with me about the situation between you and Marina."

"Well, it has to do with what you told me," Kelly explains. "You said that we should not keep secrets from one another. Sure it was painful to relive everything, but you were right. I should have said something a long time ago. You always listen and understand. It's not often you find someone like that in a lifetime."

"Thank you for being honest, Kelly. Now I think it's time that I do the same."

"Marissa, what are you talking about?"

"There was a reason why I missed breakfast this morning. I met up with Conway and we talked and then Kenny came and told me that Dawn got checked into the hospital due to headaches. Friday night, I snuck out of the room…and beat her ass. She insulted us, Kelly, and Dawn fought me. I ended up knocking her out, so it's very likely that I gave her a concussion and caused her headaches."

"May! What did I tell you; don't let them get to you. You didn't have to go there! You're too damn good for them to get under your skin and call you those awful names."

"There's a bit more to the story," May replies. "Drew, for whatever reason, had a feeling that I was responsible for Dawn going to the hospital. He was right and wanted to speak with me. I found out that not only did he have affairs on Dawn, he still had feelings for me. I kept telling him that we will never get together again, but he didn't listen. He took it to…a level it did not belong and…forced himself on me and kissed me."

"What the fuck, May?" Kelly exclaims, fighting back the pain in her hand and shooting up from her seat. "He kissed you?" she whispers. Making a fist with her uninjured left hand and fighting back the pain obvious on her face because of her right hand, she declares "God help him if my hand isn't broken because I'll break something of his the next time I see that cocksucker!"

"No need, Kelly," the star coordinator assures. "He won't try anything else with me. I made sure of that when I slapped the taste out of him for doing that, but…thank you for sticking up for me, girl. I know that most of the time, it's best to talk things like this out and come to an understanding, but anyone who says that talking things out with someone who tries to 'cop a feel' or what have you on a woman must be crazy."

"May," Kelly explains, "I consider it an honor for me to stand up for you wherever and whenever you need it. I just…wish that I could show you how thankful I am for you being a great part of my life. It's too soon, though."

"Too soon? What are you talking about?"

The practicing nutritionist is thankful. That is all she can be given the circumstances because she and May are interrupted by the doctor in charge of the care of Kelly's hand. There was no way in which she could have answered May's question without blowing her big plan to propose to her girlfriend on Sunday evening on the Grand Festival stage. As mentioned in past discussions between the two, it would be best for both of them, especially May, to avoid distractions.

"Well hello again, fellow soon-to-be doctor," says her medical practitioner Corrine Dawes. Doctor Dawes is a lanky, fair-haired woman in her early thirties with brown eyes, tanned skin and a lab coat, which can only be connected with practitioners of health. "Let's all have a look at these pictures together of your hand and then we'll go from there." As the doctor strives to get to know her patients on a person-to-person basis, even if she would likely not see them again after the Grand Festival, she found out many things about Kelly, including her career plans and even the reason why May and not her own parents are with her in the room. It is the couple's mutual but unspoken decision to no longer be afraid to tell the truth and in this case it works as the doctor remains very friendly and complimentary towards the pair through the evaluation process.

Putting four different plates in front of what appears to be a light; Doctor Dawes turns on the light, illuminating all of the plates. As she asks Kelly, "Okay, now to test your medical knowledge; do you know what metacarpals and phalanges are?" she expects and gets the correct answer in that they are bones which are found in the middle of the hand and the fingers.

"That's right," she answers, "and congratulations Miss Cruz-Marin; you have successfully broken or cracked five of these bones!" While May laughs at that comment for a bit, Kelly either does not see the sarcasm and dry humor in her doctor's voice or refuses to take it given her present condition. "Your index, middle and ring fingers all have hairline fractures, including two of the bones in the middle of your hand, metacarpal II and metacarpal III. The…good news about all of this is that none of the fractures will require any surgery. I'd bet the farm that there are some bruises on a few of these bones that don't any cracks."

"So her hand will have to go in a cast, right?" May asks, already knowing the answer.

"Without question. Kelly, your hand won't heal without one. I'll get in contact with your M.D. in Lilycove so we can swap information, but we'll definitely have you fitted for a cast right now. We'll then set a timetable where he will look at it in about a month, give his prognosis and see whether or not to keep it on longer."

* * *

Having finally gotten Damien to sleep after a long crying spell, Solidad finds a moment to rest in her hotel room and watch more appeals of action just down the road. She knew that Drew had to leave the room for about an hour to talk with Contesta about his punishment for the fiasco in the media center earlier in the afternoon. She allowed it, under the condition that he comes back to her room so they could talk. It is the one thing that she wants to do more than anything else. Solidad grew tired of the laissez-faire attitude of her son's father and needed to know if he could make a turn for the better and at the very least, care for the baby boy in the other room.

A few knocks on the door to her room for rent and it raises Solidad from the bed. She did not expect any visitors to come to her place for the weekend, but is sure who the person on the other side of the door is. It has been about an hour, after all.

Opening the door without viewing the peephole first, Solidad is not surprised to find Drew. His look appears to be neutral at best, though it can be deceptive when the moment calls for such. "Hi."

"Hey, Drew," she greets.

"May I come in…so we can talk? I—we really need to talk."

Silence passes. Solidad desires to remain strong in the face of this young man and does so. At the same time, however, Drew is calling for exactly what she needed since deciding to come out of hiding and confront an inactive father. Stepping to the side, she grants Drew silent permission to come inside. Then she says, "Have a seat," which sets the conversation in motion as the male coordinator sits on a spot of the bed. Solidad follows him, taking a seat to his left and turning off the television set.

"Okay," he begins in soft but sturdy preparation for what lies ahead. "I need to apologize to both you and Damien. I've been acting like a real monster during this time and neither of you deserved it, bottom line. I got a call from someone earlier and it really made me think. The way in which I was raised…was not necessarily the best way for a young boy to be brought up. Looking back at it, even though I did not suffer any abuse or neglect and had parents who truly loved me, something was missing. I suppose the best way to put it is…I had my father, but I didn't have my daddy. At age eighteen, there isn't much I can do about that for me right now, but…I have a son, Solidad. I have a son and that means that…it's not about me anymore."

"Drew," Solidad speaks, "that's…the best thing that I could possibly hear right now. So just to make sure I'm hearing you correctly, you're ready to step up and be there for Damien?"

"I have no choice in the matter. I brought him here and no matter what role I play, his life will be affected by me in some form. I can continue the way I have been and he'll grow to resent and hate me, or I can go one day at a time not worrying about whether I'm doing the right thing or not and just be there. Regardless of that, I am Damien's father and he is my son. That much is etched in stone and…" Drew pauses for recollection and affirmation. For the first time in his young life, he will place someone else before him and in highest regard. It is the greatest step he has ever taken, and the moment is an emotional one which brings more than its share of tears to the cool, calm and collected one. He cannot remember a moment that he cried so sincerely since the woman next to him defeated him in his first contest in what has become a great career in coordinating.

Solidad watched, waited and listened to all of the words that came from Drew's mouth. Nothing seemed forced, rehearsed or false. Everything felt real, including the crying, which the Kanto Grand Festival champion seems to be a catalyst towards causing such actions. Because of this sincerity, she wants to reach out and does so by pulling Drew into a hug.

"You know," Solidad whispers into the young man's ear, "this is what I wanted to hear from you from the very beginning. I was a love struck idiot, because I thought that having your baby would mean having you at the same time. But I know better, now. _We_ know better now and because of that…this will work. Just don't worry about it and it'll work, Drew. There's no such thing as a perfect parent. Everyone is just a work in progress. Do you understand?"

He shakes his head again and again. It would appear that something is amiss in his head. It is simple, yet complicated as one factor contributed to Drew's behavior over the past several months as it pertained to Solidad and their son. "I just," he begins, voice breaking and heart full of remorse. "I didn't want him to hate me, Solidad. I wanted to give Damien whatever he wanted; more than what I got growing up when my dad spent much of his time growing his business. I did that by working and sending money back to Pewter City. He would never have had to deal with struggle like my family did. I should have known better. It's not so much about what he wants but what he needs."

And then, if one were to believe in the idea of divine intervention and forces around us controlling most actions, a need arises as young Damien awakens from his slumber and alerts his nurturers to some issue that has come up. It is exactly what Drew just referred to in being a provider for his progeny.

Taking her once best friend by the hand, Solidad smiles at the opportunity Drew has to live up to his word. "Come with me," she says and they get up from the bed and into the other room, where they see Damien stirring for a bit before gurgling and even cooing for a moment; all of this taking place in less than ten seconds time. This gives the young parents just cause to laugh for a bit before mother Solidad signals to Drew to hold him.

Asking if it is all right, Solidad reiterates the fact that Damien is his son. Using the best of care, Drew picks him up from the crib and holds him close to his chest, keeping him still there while he is wrapped up in a couple of blankets with a blue bonnet over top of his head to cover what hair he has.

He has the support, and then some, as Drew holds a firm but fair grip on his son. Soon, Damien begins to stir once more, but on instinct, the father slowly rocks the son back and forth to calm him down. The technique works, as the noises which once came from the infant child are silenced and replaced by soft whispers in the boy's ears assuring him that everything will change from this point forward.

The whole scene is the dream of Solidad's come true and made the reality of them standing up in the room caring for their boy while on one accord. Leaning forward, Drew whispers something lightly into his son's ear. Hoping and praying that he can understand, he says to Damien, "We're stuck together for good, little man. Your daddy has his head on straight now and nothing's gonna keep me from being there for you every step from here on out. I'm so sorry and I love you," and with these words, the tears pour out of the teen's ducts and fall down onto the ground with one splashing on the skin of Damien, waking him and causing him to cry once more. This time, Solidad does not have to struggle alone to stop the noise because as quickly as the tears began for her son, they ended.

His dad is there to cry for him and carry the burden for his son at last.

* * *

It is purple, goes down to just past the bottom of her wrist and now carries the signature of one of the top pokemon coordinators in the entire world in the area of her hand along with several heart shapes. Kelly has had her cast fitted to her hand and afterwards gets several instructions about not getting it wet and treating any cuts, bruises, sores or any further injuries which she has or might develop in the future.

"Now if you have any questions after you leave here, either get in touch with my office here in Slateport," Doctor Dawes includes, "or you can just give your doctor a call. Sound good, Kelly?"

"Yes, doctor. Thanks for all of your help."

"Okay, both of you are free to go! All I ask is that you sign a couple of release forms at the front desk. Otherwise, we're done." After thanking Doctor Dawes for all of the help, Kelly and May make their way out of the room and fill out two forms at the desk. With the professor's writing hand out of commission for the time being, May does all of the paperwork for her girlfriend. It takes virtually no time, about eight minutes at the most, and the couple is out in the streets walking to the direction of their hotel. They walk with Kelly on the left with her arm around May's shoulders while she walks in a similar stride on the right of the sidewalk.

"Beautiful night, isn't it?"

"Indeed it is, Kelly," she answers the girl. "Reminds me of when I was younger during the spring and summer nights I'd spend outside with Max and we'd just be out there and…watch the sun come down. You know how much I love to do that with you when we're together and…I guess it runs in the family because Max is trying to get Harley on board with watching sunsets but like everything else with Harley, it can be difficult."

"I know I don't say it outright that much, but I really love doing things like that with you," Kelly admits. "It's simple but fun. I know that people would call it wishful thinking but I hope that when we finally live together, for good this time, that we spend our nights just like that…but we can wait. We're young and we have all the time in the world to get everything in place. But from here on out, I don't ever wanna give you a reason to cry May—that's if I can help it."

Kelly, through her words and her actions, appears to be setting up for something monumental in nature. She told May late Friday morning that they would eventually get married when they got older. It would seem that there would be no need for a proposal from either party if this were the case, but this would ruin May's plans which she spoke to Kelly's own father about earlier in the afternoon. Something seems off about Kelly wanting to put off any official proposal while at the same time always mentioning her and May spending their lives together as one.

"Be honest with me, okay?"

"Of course, May."

"Let me first say that…you're my girl," May smiles. "I doubt that will change whether we are age seventeen or seventy-seven. But I can't help thinking that you have something that you want to do and…you're trying to hold yourself back from doing it for whatever reason."

The young teen from Lilycove City can officially be colored scared. May is putting together the pieces of the puzzle and figuring everything out, it appears. While she has not out and out said that she knows what Kelly's plan is, the words are too symbolic and meaningful to be pure coincidence.

"I…you're right, May. There is something that I've wanted to do for a while since we got together. I just have a feeling that given everything this weekend, like I've stated a time or two before tonight, it would be too much of a distraction for me to do this."

"To do what?"

"To get—oh. Ah-ha. Nice try, May, but you're not gonna catch me." Pointing to her head, she claims, "I'm too smart for it, girl! I'll just say that I'm here with you and enjoying myself but at the same time; I have a job to do in helping you get to the top so you can win the Grand Festival. That's the reason why you're here, am I right?"

"Yeah, you're right. And about being too smart to get caught; I've always been taught that if there is something that's on your mind, the smart thing to do is let someone know. You get it over with and move on."

"Yeah," Kelly admits, "but this is a big one, May!"

"Well, I doubt it's anything we can't solve together. We've been doing that so long that it seems like second nature to me." Stopping on the sidewalk just two or three blocks from the motel and an additional block removed from the stadium, she holds Kelly close, looks her in the eyes and says, "I've learned something because of Drew, Dawn and even Marina to an extent; there will always be distractions, Kelly. No matter _what_ I do, there will always be distractions. I can't escape them, period. They'll follow me closer than my own shadow. Seriously, what's one more distraction?" After a few seconds of quiet while in the equally quiet streets, it seems that May's girlfriend did not understand that she just asked a question.

'Where are your smarts now, girl?' she thinks before informing the young professor that she asked her a question which she would like for her to answer.

"Well if we're talking about the same thing, then this is a _huge _distraction. We've been training for a month so you can have this chance, you know?"

"But that's the thing; I don't know what we're talking about, Kelly. You keep telling me that it's too soon or that we can wait. What are we waiting for? I don't know because you won't say anything, so I think I have to take matters into my own hands."

There is no more escaping it or explaining it away. Kelly knows that May wants to press the matter and she would like to do her absolute best to change the subject and just put it off to the side until the time is right. "May, can't we talk about this later? We've already missed a lot of time planning battles because of my hand. The hours are ticking…what are you doing, May?" she asks as she watches the Petalburg coordinator comes down to the concrete ground.

"What does it look like? I'm on one knee."

"Why?" she fearfully asks her as May now digs through her backpack in search of something.

"I told you," May explains while successfully retrieving something small enough to hold and cover in her right hand, "I'm taking matters into my own hands. You're stuck with whatever your plan is and that's fine, but if this is what we both want, waiting is useless." Opening her hand at that moment causes Kelly to gasp so loud that she probably scared a few of the city animals out of their hiding spots. In the center of May's hand is a black velvet box fit for an item of jewelry designed to go onto a finger.

"May?"

"Please," she interrupts. "I just want to ask you one more question." Opening the box, May presents herself and her gift to Kelly, inquiring "Kelly Natalie Annika Cruz-Marin, will you marry me? Will you do me the honor of being my wife?"

Here come the tears, symbols so clear. A proud girl of Spanish and Norwegian descent stands above her well-traveled girlfriend looking at a box containing the most beautiful ring she has ever seen in her life. This band is either silver or white gold, compared to her gold band for May and the diamond on top of the ring is not quite the size of hers but appears to complete the ring in a unique form.

There is no more dancing around the issue anymore as the tears continue to make their way onto Kelly's face and then move downward. Her plans, which she outlined to her own parents earlier in the morning, have been thwarted in favor of this makeshift proposal from her sweetheart. In retrospect, she could not be happier for it. It is one of the reasons why she is crying at the moment aside from _some_ pride in that she did not get the chance to ask May first.

"Kelly, please answer me," May shakes in anticipation of hearing the word from her potential fiancé.

With this swell of feelings and emotion gripping Kelly from the inside out, she forgot the most important part of any proposal. Rings are mere symbols. Getting down on one knee is nothing but a traditional gesture and so is the stating of a full name. All of these things come and go just like the tide, but one part of a proposal will remain as the greatest memory possible from such a life-changing moment.

Picking May up from the ground, Kelly makes due on giving her girlfriend an answer by viewing the windows to her soul and stepping forward to give her a kiss on her lips while keeping a hold onto her upper and lower back fighting back even more tears combined with the pain from her hand.

Letting go of the kiss but still holding onto the girl, a simple answer of yes from Kelly would have sufficed given the precious moment, but there are a few things she want May to know. "I love you so very much, May Maple. You've changed me for the better. You taught me that you can love and I'm forever grateful for that and…yes. Yes," and then raising her arms high in the air she screams, "Yes!" one more time before wrapping the proposer into her arms tightly. "I'll marry you," she now whispers. "I'll do it because you're right. I tried to hang on. I had a plan; I'd propose after the Grand Festival. That's why I pushed you so hard, May. But I guess it doesn't matter now, though."

"Actually, there is still hope for your plan," May admits while taking the ring out of its box. "I can win the Grand Festival and you can still go along with your plans to propose in front of the world. That's what you wanted to do right?"

Kelly nods before answering, "Yeah, that's what I _wanted_. And you're right. I can still do that! Okay, I won't show you my ring yet, but—now what?"

May now has her ring in her hand. As she explains to Kelly, "This ring was given to my grandmother by my grandfather. My parents didn't get the ring because my dad got married to mom very quickly and my granddad didn't have time to give the story to him. But it's Grandma Katherine's ring which she gave me several months ago. As you know, we confided in both of them about our relationship a while back, and she gave it to me on the promise that I'd only give it to the person I planned on staying with forever." Sniffling for a bit, she continues, "I know only one person like that, but tradition says that the engagement ring goes on the right hand. Yours is in a somewhat mangled state, though. Oh wait! I know!"

Putting the ring into one of her pants pocket, she reaches around the back of Kelly's neck, taking off the gold chain around it, slipping on the ring, and then placing the chain back around her fiancée's neck. "There. You're wearing the ring now."

Holding up the ring, she smiles for a moment as it glistens in the moonlight and rolls down both sides of the chain. "I won't let it go until I can wear it for real. Thank you for this, May, and thank you for…everything." With arms wide open, the pair hugs each other once again. One step forward and they are closer to becoming one. "I wanted to do this so badly."

"You'll get your chance tomorrow. Now let's go. There are some people we need to alert. They usually give their blessing in a time like this."

It's clear who May is referring to. "Our parents. Mom and dad already know that I'm proposing this weekend."

"But my parents don't know," May counters. Shrugging her shoulders, she concedes to whatever fate comes her way, exclaiming, "Well they're gonna find out soon! Let's go!" And with that, they do go. They run like kids playing in the park back to their home for the weekend.

But truth be told, home is wherever they are at any given moment together. For when they are together, they are secure knowing that they don't have to go on a scavenger hunt for love; for it is right in front of them. Now their relationship has changed, so it seems. Marriage is on the horizon for the duo, but the idea is the same.

Their faith in each other is unchanging. They trust each other and believe they can stay together forever even when others do not. It is their hope that when they announce their soon-to-be union to the world that people will accept, even if they don't approve. But no matter what; the two always plan to love one another.

In reality, nothing has changed at all.

* * *

A/N: I want to know if you cried. If you didn't, where's your love for life? Where's your heart? This story has turned a corner and then some. Soon will come the announcement of the engagement to the parents, but for now, more 'Swinging Four' dialogue, Marina's appeal, and Brock, Lucy and Max enter the gates of hell…figuratively, of course.

Until then, I am Rave!


	33. No Force Necessary

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Kelly explains how Marina and her became friends and eventually girlfriends. Marina caught herself in several lies and left without an explanation for her relationship with Jimmy Aurum. Kelly learns that she has five broken bones in her hand, which is put into a cast. As the pair leaves, words they share lead to May taking matters into her own hand and proposing to Kelly, who accepts while agreeing to a worldwide proposal should May win the Grand Festival tomorrow. Drew goes back to Solidad's hotel and apologizes to her and Damien, promising to be a part of his son's life and showing it by calming his son down when he cries.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 33- No Force Necessary)

* * *

"Madam Purr, I choose you!" Marina calls and the stage is set for her and her Purugly to do their appeal to the large evening crowd. It is here where the idol shines the brightest and does not look nearly as idle. Behind her smile, demeanor and attitude which she always has time to show off to the crowd, there is not much, which she will even admit to herself whenever she can stand to look at her face in the mirror.

But her true colors are not something that she can afford to worry about at this point in time. She has a reputation, however rooted in falsehood it may be, to live up to in this appeal. For a former Grand Festival champion to not make it past the appeals round in future contests is inexcusable and intolerable. She knows the road is difficult but possible and she will travel it to the top of the podium and the Ribbon Cup one more time with her pokemon.

"Madam Purr, start off with a Hyper Beam attack and," she adds, pointing in the direction of the sun, "aim for the big ball in the sky!" It seems odd for anyone considered to be an expert in the field of coordinating or training to 'aim high' in their efforts to impress, but as is often said in these situations; never question the experts. Despite this, many in the crowd and the important five on the judges' panel look at Marina with confusion as she seemingly wastes a hyper beam by aiming it high into the air in any old direction.

"Now, let's see some holes! Dig five of them into the stage!" With the command of one of the most powerful pokemon attacks possible seemingly being put on the back burner so that Purugly can do its best intimidation of a dog and its bones, even more people look on at the main stage with wonder, namely wondering just what Marina is planning or thinking with this next series of moves.

The pokemon known as Madam Purr does not show any concern for this criticism whatsoever and just digs a total of five circular holes into the Earth of the stadium floor which form a circle in their own right if one could see the sight from above. Each hole goes down to about half a meter into the ground each. Once Madam Purr finishes her work, Marina calls for her to do slash attacks inside of the circle. Her Purugly does so, connecting each circle with lines that jut into the center of this stage. Afterwards, Madam Purr plays a quick game of 'connect the dots' when she connects the circles by what appears to be a string in the ground.

"All right," Marina says while looking up at the sky, "Now scratch every part of the stage and keep the circle intact. We're making good time!"

'With what?' many of the spectators ask her from the stands. "All right, dig a hole in the center of the circle, Madam!"

So many holes, one would think that the self-proclaimed Idol is attempting to recreate a novel or major motion picture of the same name. One might say that this appeal is full of holes and emptiness all around. It would appear that Marina is just throwing attacks together and rearranging the stage floor, but Purugly works overtime to dig yet another large hole in the middle of the circle consisting of five holes.

The clock is really ticking down at this point and with only a fleeting hyper beam and six holes in the ground to show for it, there is nothing truly spectacular about this effort as Madam Purr now sits off to the site of her creation while looking up in the sky just like her champion coordinator. Aside from a darkening sky and the serenading of the sun and the moon in a dance unlike any other, there does not appear to be much to look at up there, until a flicker of light appears from the heavens. It presents itself to the crowd becoming larger and larger as the time ticks down to almost nothing.

Then comes…a sound. The sound of a whisper soon erupts into a boom from that same twinkle in the sky and down to the ground comes a beacon of light from above. It is the Hyper Beam from before, which has come back down to Earth and into the big hole Purugly prepared scant seconds prior to its re-arrival. As the beam makes its way into the hole, the impact reverberates throughout the stadium and just as quickly, they feel the rush of five separate beams coming from the five holes made earlier in the appeal and escaping out of the stadium once more through the outside as time expires on what is truly a unique appeal. And then comes…a smatter of applause which grows and grows in loudness.

A few seconds pass as both Marina and Madam Purr take a bow at the accomplishment. The Idol of New Bark Town returns her Purugly into her pokeball as Robert Weis makes his way onto the stage. With microphone in hand he admits, "Well Marina, I doubt that anyone here could tell where you were going with that appeal, but I have to say that the preparation paid off for it amounting to…quite the light show. But as far as photons, I don't know so much. The judges may not know as much either, but we'll ask them what they thought right now starting with Director Contesta."

"Robert makes an excellent point, Miss Marina. This was _not _your everyday appeal, but it did tell a story. Your Purugly's preparation for the big Hyper Beam coming down to the sky was quite a tale of hurried panic, though I'm just not sure what purpose that it served. It didn't do a good job of explaining that, but this was a good appeal."

"A light show summed up in one word; remarkable!" says Fan Club President Suziko.

"Quite a show there with Purugly getting down and dirty there in the ground and making those holes for the Hyper Beam," comments Nurse Joy of Slateport City.

"Just…I had the feeling you were going for something unique, but the fact is that this time is here for you to do something that will work," informs the Littleroot Town Nurse Joy to a good amount of applause from the fans. "Don't get me wrong. The appeal was very good; I just think that you could do something else with Purugly and an element to get a better score and like Contesta stated, I don't know what you were trying to show us with that."

"I guess in the time that the other four judges have taken, I've been trying to figure out what you were aiming for and I've come to a few ideas," begins the Ever Grande Nurse Joy. "The light from the Hyper Beam reminded me of a boomerang coming back to the person who threw it. But the light also took on a few more roles. One of them looked like a starship in orbit while in the air and when it went through the holes, it looked as if water was coming out of a sprinkler. I'm just making guesses, though. Please let me know if I'm wrong or not."

"Well, as the judges begin to tally your scores, Marina, there are two questions that come to mind almost immediately, and the first one is the most popular one; how did you come up with this?"

"Robert, this appeal came after we found out that Purugly could make a Hyper Beam curve in the air and come back down to the ground. I thought of how we could harness that power and turn one beam into several to mimic a jet flyover that you often see in Grand Festivals. It was a stretch given the dimensions of the stadium, but I pulled it off."

"And that answers another question of what you wanted to do for this appeal. There was very little in symbolism, but it was still great to watch. The question is did the judges like it? All of them saying that it was very good, but what does 'very good' mean on the scorecards. We're about to find out. Up in the booth? What's the score?"

With those seven words becoming Robert's catch phrase for the evening, he and everyone else looks up at the stadium's big screen. Two seconds later, there flashes a total score of forty-five. Then she sees the judges' individual scores. Contesta gave Marina an eight, Suziko a ten; Slateport City's Nurse Joy gives a ten, Littleroot's Nurse Joy, an eight and Ever Grande's Nurse Joy, a nine."

"It's a great score and you should be proud of it," Robert analyzes, "but we've had appeals here that have done much better than that one. It puts you at number ten of all coordinators right now and you need to be at least sixteenth. Any final thoughts?"

Looking very nervous and almost appearing to sweat as she sees how close she came to not even being able to make it to the show. She answers Robert's question, "Fingers crossed and knock on wood. No matter what happens, doing this was worth a shot. Thank you all!" she says leaving for backstage, signing several autographs for the girls in attendance and then heading into the arms of her man, Jimmy.

"Great job, girl!" he says while sharing an embrace with Marina. He can see a few tears coming down her eyes, which he wipes away almost immediately. "Hey, you'll be fine. Don't worry about it. Appeals like the one May had earlier come around once in a generation. Trying to go against that is not something that even I would want to do."

"It's…complicated, Jimmy," Marina laments. "I just want to end this. This weekend has become so slow. Let's just end this now."

"Marina, what are you talking about?"

"Jimmy, let's…I'm tired. Let's just go. Let's go back to the hotel. Is that okay?"

"Of course. Whatever you want to do is fine with me. Come on," he says, taking his longtime girlfriend by the hand and away from the paparazzi, away from the fans and away from the watchful eyes and ears of the world.

It is in that place which they are leaving where people must stand out and be Idols, role models and superhuman in their actions. But in reality, when they walk away from the lights, the spectacle and the pageantry of playing a role, people quickly learn that they are just like everyone else.

Behind the cheerful demeanor that Marina displays are roots deeply planted in humanity's faults, but even they need pulling in order for anything to grow.

* * *

With his plate in hand, Kenny comes back, this time with a plate of baked fish, a baked potato loaded with all the trimmings and a healthy serving of snow peas. He notices that Conway and Holly have both gotten a serving of steak, something he plans on getting a little later and Zoey is about finished with her salad.

"I'm back, guys," he announces as unnecessary as it might be. Sitting down, he asks, "So is there something that you want to know about Zoey and me, guys?"

"Yeah, actually, I do," Holly speaks. "I talked to Zoey about this during the individual meeting and she said that the two of you fell for Dawn Berlitz and got rejected when she ended up with Drew. So how do you end up getting together?"

"Good question. Kenny, I'll be back. You can tell them the story."

"Right then," he answers, getting up and letting his girlfriend out of the booth. "Okay, Conway knows most of this already. Drew was with May at the time but she caught him cheating on her with Dawn. We were competing in the same region at the time and Zoey noticed that May looked really down in the dumps. I asked her what happened and…she just broke down in my arms and admitted what she saw. I'm not embarrassed to admit that I cried when I heard it because back then, I thought that there was at least a chance."

"So Zoey had feelings for Dawn just like you did," Conway squares away. "Did you know about Zoey's feelings for Dawn or vice versa?"

"No," Kenny answers. "Our connection was May, who is a friend of both of us…knew that I had feelings for Dawn but didn't know about Zoey. Talking after that is when we learned that while both of them were traveling together, the attraction really started to develop. May was the one that got everything rolling for us. Our friendship was good before this, but it's a hundred times better after it. We talked more, we hung out together more and we just learned more about each other. Then May made the now infamous quote, 'Hey you guys. I have this crazy idea, but tell me what you think. Since you two both fell for Dawn, maybe the two of you should get together!' And here I am thinking, 'Yeah, right'. I have nothing but respect for Zoey, but the thought of being with her never crossed my mind. I guess that's why we all thought that the idea was crazy, including the person who came up with it. But we went out alone as friends, it was always said that we'd do this just as friends so there would be no pressure, and…we found out that we do have quite a bit in common that you two already know about and decided to go on an actual date two weeks later. Two months later, we officially became boyfriend and girlfriend."

"Wow, that's a great story to hear," Conway comments. As Zoey comes back he adds, "We just heard the story. It's great that you could find love like that. Our story is not that dramatic and it doesn't involve a web of deceit."

"That doesn't mean that I don't want to hear it," Zoey says sitting down with her second plate of food.

"We didn't become friends until I took time off and went to Rustboro City and their Pokemon Academy," Holly begins. "I initially went there to improve my battling skills, further my education and make myself better-rounded in the subject. We knew each other from maybe a year or two before because we got quite far in a tag battle tournament as a part of different teams. I was with Brock and Conway got paired up with Dawn. We ended up in the same class with Miss Roxanne teaching a course called 'Pokemon Battles for the Advanced Student', and Conway, you can tell them the rest."

"All right," he answers. "I had the fortune of being the team leader of a squadron at the Pokemon Academy. Our instructor put our large class into groups of twenty and Holly was a part of our group called…The Big Shots or something like that. It was our job to help each other with schoolwork and developing each other's battling education by battling with one another and keeping us strong. Every week, we'd have battles all over the campus and I, as leader, would assign each trainer a role. If they succeeded, they would get a better ranking, if they failed, they would get traded. Often times, I'd pull Holly off to the side because I remembered her from the tournament in Hearthome she mentioned a bit earlier. At the time she was a very good battler with all the potential in the world to be great…she just had and still does have some confidence issues."

Conway continues to tell the story to an interested Kenny and Zoey, explaining, "A lot of that comes from her upbringing. She is the youngest of _nine_ children! Even now I think my family is pretty big, but whenever I'm around the Rockwell's, I can't hold a candle to them and I realize that our family is average in size. Anyway, she had a lot to live up to. Her oldest brother is almost forty years old, so whenever she'd so something great, her mom and dad would compare it to her brothers and sisters, which might not have been the best idea because the next youngest sibling is her twenty-five year old brother Trevor."

"And guys, don't get me wrong," Holly injects. "I love my parents and my family and I'll put nothing before them with few exceptions, but it was hard growing up always hearing about marriages, children, graduations…I can't compare to that, especially since I'm still a teenager. My only advantage was that I was the baby and all of my family members showered me with love when I came up, but I digress. I lost a lot of battles as a part of Conway's squadron and a lot of my squadron members wanted to trade me to another squad. Conway didn't want to give up on me, though, and I'm quite thankful for it. I ended up telling him everything I just told you about my family and my role in it. He…was so good during that time. He told me just don't worry about it and that when I go out for battle to just think about me and my pokemon. My matches improved and the team morale also improved…until we got to midterms and, once again, we got to be in a Tag Battle with Conway and I as partners which we lost."

"I was about to just give it all up and stop kidding myself, but Conway stepped in before I left and told me that I did great and that I shouldn't feel ashamed for losing. Looking back, we did do pretty well going all the way to the round of sixteen in a class of over 200 pairs. He just reached out and wanted to make me feel better and he's been doing it ever since."

"Now there's a love story, if there ever was one," Zoey compliments. "Few guys are as willing to reach out without seeming like he's girl hunting and few girls are as willing to open up about these things without appearing weak to themselves and their peers."

"Zoey doesn't have that problem because I have yet to find any great weaknesses…or at least ones she's willing to show."

"Watch it, buddy," Zoey warns, pointing in the direction of Kenny. "All right, Holly, what you said about your family got me thinking. You have eight siblings. Care to guess how many _I _have?"

Holly just does not guess at Zoey's inquiry. With some thought, including a consideration of her soon-to-be lover's tone, she makes the educated conclusion that Zoey has, "Zero. You're an only child."

"That's right!" she proudly answers. "The fact that I'm an only child makes Kenny the apple in the eyes of my mom and dad. To say that my folks love Kenny would be like saying that Holly just indulges."

Hearing her name causes the human garbage disposal to turn up from her plate of battered shrimp and hush puppies to say, "Hey!" while her mouth is still full of food.

"Oh, it's true," Zoey simply counters. "Anyway, I had told them that I was a lesbian before I got together with Kenny. They were…fine with it, I suppose, but I could tell it got to them, especially my dad. If I stuck to my guns, then they'd miss out on a lot of things. They…accepted me, but when I brought Kenny home and clarified my coming out by telling them that I just needed to find the right guy, which is the truth. But they love Kenny and I think it's for two reasons; one is that dad always wanted a son but couldn't have one with mom because…carrying me to term was rough and the doctor warned both of them that another child could cause a great risk to her health."

"And the second one is my boyish charm…" Kenny informs, but the 'reasoning' cannot be completed as Zoey gives the loudmouthed one a nice smack on the back of his head. "OW!" he exclaims. "You promised me that you'd give that up for Lent!"

"I'm not Catholic, silly boy. I really don't have to promise anything for these twenty or so days remaining."

"Zoey! You promised!"

"Oh, all right! I promise I won't hit you anymore," she concedes. 'Whiny bitch,' she speaks below a whisper. "Anyway, the _real_ second reason why I think my parents accepted Kenny so quickly was because…"

"He's a guy," Conway answers for Zoey.

"Will you all let me tell my story, please? Yeah, you're right, Conway. I do think it had to do with the fact that I brought a boy home."

"Well, that was just too damn easy to figure out," he explains while stirring his drink with a straw. "I mean…just…forgive me for interrupting, Zoey."

"Eh, don't worry about it. Hey, I'm up for a game! How about you guys?"

"Right here?" Holly questions.

"Sure! This game doesn't need materials or anything. You've heard of marry, fuck or kill, right?"

"Oh, yeah! Sounds good. Umm…is this limited to anyone?"

"No, go for it! Just name someone and say if you'd rather marry them, get a quickie or just whack 'em. Got it?"

"I got it!" answers the bespectacled trainer. "Can I start?"

"Go for it, man! Who do you have in mind?"

"Well, Kenny, this one just might hit home. Dawn Berlitz."

Everyone at the table takes their time until Zoey starts the answer session by giving a surprising response. "Marry."

Kenny turns his head and asks, "Really?"

"Yeah."

"If you would have asked me…three years ago, my answer would have been marry. Now, I think it's would be just a fuck." Then, he smiles with that slick demeanor and explains himself, saying, "She does have experience, after all."

"Oh my—and you two wonder why I just said 'marry'." Zoey could not believe the absolute bluntness of her boyfriend at the moment. Given all that they've went through with Dawn, she thought that he'd be a bit more conscious of his choice, but the unpredictability of the male coordinator shines once more in this situation…until…

"I'd say fuck," comes out of the mouths of both Conway and Holly in unison and Zoey wonders what type of company she is keeping at the table and in the bedroom for later.

"I stand corrected. Conway, you wouldn't marry…"

"Honestly, no," he answers Zoey. "She's nice and all, but…I just don't feel it."

"All right. I'm next," Kenny declares. "How about…Tom Cruise?"

It is near unanimous. While Kenny does not mind having a one night stand with the Hollywood mainstay, everyone else just wishes that he would go away for a very long time. Everyone else says 'kill'.

"That was easy. If only he'd just act and not talk. All right, my turn," Zoey says. "I'll throw out…Kelly."

"Our Kelly?"

"Yeah, and I'd…marry her. She's a tough one and I like that."

"I'd…yeah. Probably marry," Holly admits.

"Same," Conway answers.

"Guys, I'd…kill."

"What?" they all ask Kenny in unison.

"She's a great teacher," he defends. "Her class was as hard as hell and she was no nonsense in her class."

"Maybe you're saying that because you were the class clown during our in-class sessions."

"Zoey, four hours in class will wear on _anybody_," Kenny claims. "I just wanted to loosen everyone up and she said that I was being a distraction. Like none of us could get all of our fucking material on the Blackboard website. Look, the bottom line is that I like her as a friend and will stand up for both of them when needed, but there is no friend option and…no offense to her or May, but I'm not a big fan of stone cold lesbians."

"Dude—okay, I can't hit you for saying something like that…"

"This is true," he says.

"But I can ask Holly to hit you for me. Holly?"

Shrugging her shoulders, she thinks little of the scene and just does for Zoey what she can't do for herself by flinging an unused fork in Kenny's direction, which causes him to jump up from his seat and leave for yet another plate, but not before letting his girlfriend know, "Next year, I want your Lent promise in writing, Zoey. You really need to stop it! It's not funny either, Conway! Jesus!" he adds, leaving the booth in a huff.

Conway apparently is disregarding the words of the younger male as he finds it quite humorous that a guy with a mouth that would make politicians humble is getting some form of comeuppance. "He is something else," says the young adult through his laughter.

"You know, there's something I wanna ask him when he comes back here," Holly lets the rest of the booth know. "He's been…brutally honest about everything else and I doubt he'll tell me anything but the truth about what I have in mind to ask him."

* * *

The elevator ride seems to take an eternity in Max's mind. The tower does go high up into the air beyond fifty stories. While Lucy and Brock get their fill of refreshments for the tower guests, he awaits the moment when the door will finally open to the penthouse and to Harley. Before he can do that though, he has to go through his parents, whom he rang just minutes prior to going up in the elevator to get permission to just knock on the penthouse door. The door opens leading to a lengthy walkway leading to the large living space.

"Are we being led into some sort of fun house?" Lucy questions as Max runs to the doorway and uses the doorbell on the frame.

"That depends. Would you call this whole experience fun?" he asks as he awaits the opening of the door from the other side.

"Honestly, I still don't see how bad Harley's parents can possibly be, Max," Brock admits while playing the waiting game. "I mean, sure there are things that my mom or dad do that I think are embarrassing, but I wouldn't consider any parents creepy."

"Well hello there, young Maximus!" greets a jovial woman at the door that appears to be in her fifties or close to it. One could tell where Harley gets his hair from right away upon seeing her as the dark blue coif goes all the way down below her beltline but is kept together and nowhere near as unkempt because of several clips.

"Hi, Dr. Holloway."

"I've told you this in the past; call me Campbell, Maximus."

"Only if you call me Max," he humorously counters.

"It's a deal, buddy." Stepping outside of the penthouse, Dr. Campbell Holloway can see "So, who are your friends?"

"Oh forgive me, Campbell. This is Brock, who is studying to become a pokemon breeder and this lovely lady is his girlfriend, Pike Queen Lucy of the Kanto Battle Frontier." With handshakes and pleasures shared between all of them, Doctor Holloway suggests that they all come inside and have a seat. For some reason, Max feels that she should be angry with him. She and her husband both know that he and Harley are romantically involved and that the expressive coordinator is in the house. Surely he has told them both what he did with Kenny earlier and they are planning a lecture like no one's business towards him about fidelity and loyalty.

He sits in a family room which mirrors that of a family several tax brackets down from the Holloway's. Aside from one piece of modern art near the window, there are three couches made of black leather and two recliners of a similar material. A coffee table made of wood has a place in the middle of the room so that as many as nine people can enjoy the caffeinated drink along with dessert for their various dinner parties.

Campbell does not join the trio in sitting down on the couch right away. Instead, she goes into the kitchen for a second before coming back with a plate of cookies and a gentleman carrying several glasses and a jug of milk no more than two liters in volume.

"Good evening, Bo," Max greets as Harley's father and Campbell's husband enters the living room.

"Hi there, Max!" he responds in his cheerful demeanor much like his wife before him. "Would you three like some milk and cookies?"

'Have I died and gone to Mapleton Drive?' Lucy ponders. 'I haven't been offered milk and cookies since I had the chicken pox at age nine!' Not wanting to be rude as a guest in the Holloway's house, Lucy agrees to the offer for even more free food.

"Um—thanks for all of this," Max says, "but the real reason I'm here has to do with Harley. You see, there's been a big misunderstanding and I came here hoping that we could…fix it. Harley is here, right?"

"Oh yeah," Bo answers. "Harley came here crying his eyes out. He asked me to give him his space and I have. He's just been in his room since he got here…half an hour ago."

"Could I see him now? I'd really just like to speak with him and get all of this…settled."

"Well, he'll come when he's ready, Max," Campbell interjects. "You don't want to force it. Harley wants to open up; he just needs time to do it."

"Wait, what?" Brock asks confused. 'Isn't Harley…older than _I _am? Why does he need to open up to his parents when he's a grown adult?'

They are logical questions which one would feel deserve a logical answer. One would think that with the number of university degrees shared by the two oldest people in the room that a logical and sensible answer to why an adult Harley needs to open up to his parents on matters dealing with his love life exists.

One would think.

* * *

A/N: More interaction with Bo and Campbell is coming in the next chapter. Plus, Kelly and May will announce their engagement to their parents with bit of a twist involved and the 'Swinging Four' talks more about family and pop culture.

And if you haven't noticed, this story has now passed the 100,000 word threshold! Who would have ever thunk it? Not me.

Until then, it's been Rave!


	34. May Blessings Be Upon You, Also

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Marina and her Purugly (named Madam Purr) do their appeal. The appeal is a very unique one that showcases the pokemon's ability to dig and to curve a Hyper Beam. For her efforts, Marina earns a score of 45 ranking her tenth of all coordinators. The 'Swinging Four' of Kenny, Zoey, Conway and Holly talk about how they both got together and play a game of 'Marry, Fuck or Kill'. Lucy and Brock tag along with Max as they meet Harley's parents, Doctors Bo and Campbell Holloway, and quickly find out that they are not your everyday folks as they give teens and young adults milk and cookies as light refreshments.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 34- May Blessings Be Upon You, Also)

* * *

"Excuse me, Lucille?"

"Please, Bo. Call me Lucy," she quickly responds in great abhorrence to her true given name.

"Right then. Out of curiosity, how long have you been with Brock here?"

"Four years," Lucy answers.

"Have you thought of having children yet? You can be honest with me about it."

Brock looks at Lucy and vice versa. The nervousness in the atmosphere is apparent as they show great apprehension by answering all of these personal questions about their childhood, their relationship with Harley and Max, love and sex. They then look at Max who is covering his face with his hand. Though she can not tell with great precision, the keeper of the Pike Symbol thought she heard the youngest of the five say 'I'm sorry, guys'.

"Well, were still young, guys," she explains. "We're not in any sort of rush, you know?"

"But you are serious, right?" Campbell asks the young woman. "You wouldn't be if you've been together for four years otherwise you're just wasting your time, Lucy."

"Oh, no! I just…it's not really a priority for me right now." This is a remark that Brock does not expect to hear and it causes him to do a double take. "I have a great career as a Frontier Brain and change right now is…something I don't see right now."

"Well, whatever happens with you two, just make sure you're both on the same plane," Bo explains. "I did it with Campbell and I've never regretted it. Harley has given me all the joy I could ever ask for in my life."

"Yeah, about that," Max steps in. "Harley is the reason why I'm here. Now do you think it's not too much trouble for me to go into his bedroom…?"

"Just let me tell this story first," Bo interrupts. "Harley has always had a flair for being his own individual. We talk all the time these days, but ever since he was…five he's been very independent. He knows what he wants in life and he gets it just about every single time."

"You know, that makes me think," Lucy says, a thought sparking within her head. "How did you feel about Harley…coming out to you?"

"Well, he actually told me at age eight that he'd never be with a girl as long as he lived," Bo recollects. "This was the same night I caught him in the bed…pleasing himself."

'Jesus, keep me near the cross!' Max laments. 'You don't talk about your son masturbating! That's why I didn't want to come here. Just embarrassing story after embarrassing story. Can't they give it a fucking rest on the masturbation tale already? Like Harley was the only eight year old to ever do that! I ought to know.'

"After Campbell and I sat him down that night and we had the talk, he all but said that he is gay."

"Weren't you…hurt at all when he said that?" Lucy asks out of curiosity.

"Harley is his own person," Campbell answers. "He'll do things we won't agree with. All I can do is give him love but for the longest time, he's wanted his space. So, like we said, Harley is very smart. A few weeks after our talk he got fake documentation. He then moved to the much smaller Fallarbor Town to get a trainer's license and start his journey early, which is something he talked about for a long time before then. He hasn't lived with us since."

"It's been seventeen years since that day," Bo remembers. "He's always visited since then, though, but we always knew that he'd be out and about before we knew it he was gone."

"Maybe he left to get the out of this place and away from you guys!" Max hypothesizes having enough of this scene he's been dealt once more in a trip to the house of his boyfriend's folks. "Have you two ever thought of that or did your psychoanalysis not show that conclusion after much diagnosis? I'm tired of waiting for Harley! I'm just so goddamn tired of the same stories over and over again! I'm not waiting anymore on him. Harley is twenty-five fucking years old! I shouldn't have to ask permission to see a grown man and I'm not gonna do it anymore! I'm seeing him _now_!"

As Max gets up from the couch and to the hallway, Campbell assures him that "He'll come for you when he's ready!" which garners a middle finger planted square in her direction as he disappears into the bedroom area.

Surprised by the action, or lack thereof, of the Holloways both Brock and Lucy look in the direction of the older couple wanting to know what is going on in their heads. "Aren't you gonna…I mean I'm not condoning what happened in here. That was not the way for Max to handle things."

"Lucy, don't worry about young Maximus," Campbell says, not even showing a hint of anger in her voice or her face. "He's obviously a very angry child. Fifteen is a difficult age for all kids no matter what the situation they're going through. We should let them be angry. It's not good to hold these feelings in lest you go to one of us for therapy at age forty depressed and in a mid-life crisis filling your time with riding motorcycles and getting tattoos on a whim."

The younger couple finds it difficult to look at each other given everything that has transpired in the past couple of minutes. In either of their parent's houses, the display Max put on would have earned him a stiff kick in the backside out of their house…or worse, but the Holloways almost appeared to encourage deviant behavior in spurts. They've only spent a half hour in their house, but already they feel uncomfortable as if they do not belong. Then they realize that Harley did it for eight years and wonder just what that would do to a young person coming up in the world with a natural amount of confusion and wonder.

Hopefully the Holloways have connections with therapists of different trades.

* * *

After the rant with Kenny just a few minutes ago, he has since sat back down in his seat with his latest plate of food. Holly told the remaining two that she had a question that she wanted to ask him but since he has come back to the booth, she has not gotten up the nerve. The question is quite a personal one, though, so it is hard to blame Holly for not getting up the nerve.

Then, all at once, the question gets taken out of the hands of the foxy trainer. "So, are you gonna ask Kenny what you wanted to ask him, Holly?" The young lady and the subject of the inquiry choked in response to the forwardness of Zoey. It seemed like she wanted to know what was on her mind more than anyone else.

"If you wanted to ask me something, then go right ahead!" Kenny assures her. "I'm an open book!"

"Are you sure? I mean this is a _real_ personal question that I've wondered about since we got paired together."

"Just ask it, Holly. I promise it won't get to me at all."

"All right." Mentally preparing, the youngest of the Rockwell clan asks the young Catholic teenager, "Does your family know that you are a bisexual swinger?"

Checking for any signs of offense in the eyes of Kenny, Holly can not find any. Instead, she gets an answer and it is the one that she did not expect. "Yes, they know. They know because I told them. I asked Zoey if she wanted to do it and she said yes. So we sat both of them down and…we were just honest, you know? I left no stone unturned and explained to them the extent of the…freedom that I have with Zoey that I can't get elsewhere. They...dad told me and Zoey that even though he doesn't like it, he understands that there isn't much he can do given that I haven't lived with him in seven years. He does like the fact that we protect ourselves though."

"Okay, you talked about how your dad feels," Conway interjects, "but I didn't hear anything about your mom, Kenny. What did she think?"

"She…was fine with it. I guess the fact that my family really likes Zoey for the most part prevented some big blowup from occurring. The thing that my mom said which really struck me was that she felt that we were being really mature with this. Our organization which paired us up makes a great effort to educate us on sex more than schools or the parents and above all, being honest about everything. It got me thinking; I had not been honest with my folks for whatever reason. I didn't like that and made the choice to come out and also admit to being a swinger and being bisexual."

"How did you know for sure that you were bisexual?"

"Well…I knew it when I was…about ten years old," he answers Holly. "I didn't think anything of it; it came about from me having a great affinity for seeing bodies in the nude from as far back as I could remember. You know, at age six, it didn't bother me to have friends who were sleeping over taking a bath with me. Flash forward a few years and I had a lot of male friends and we'd—you know just…fool around and wrestle each other in the house or outside or even in the park. Now I know I said that I found out that I am bi at age ten, but a few years before that there was an incident where one of my friends play fought with me and during the fight, he accidentally grabbed my crotch."

Zoey, having heard this story before, does not give off any sort of shocked reaction. Both Holly and Conway, on the other hand, are attentively looking at Kenny, hanging on to all of his words like they are dangling from a thread. "I'm not gonna lie or bullshit either of you two. It felt great. It was awesome but it caught me so off guard. This was something I've never felt before in my life. So I stopped the play fighting for a second and excused myself. I went into the bathroom and began to touch myself and see what it felt like again. I was eight years old at the time and didn't get the talk yet so I didn't know where kids came from or that this was forbidden by my religion. All I knew was that it felt great and was great that my buddy knew and introduced me to masturbation when I asked him about…touching a few days later when he slept over."

"So you're saying it was a 'show me yours, and I'll show you mine' deal?"

"That's what it became, Conway, and my interest in the nude body and watching guys shirtless contributed to it and caused me to be open about it. Something like masturbation has never been a big deal to me and neither has telling people that I'm bisexual. Really, the biggest problem was telling people that I'm bisexual and that…I'm a slut!"

Speaking of being caught off guard, not even Zoey could prepare herself for this admission from her boyfriend. Conway choked on his soda with some of it coming out of his nose. His girlfriend choked on her food before laughing out loud with the redheaded tomboy.

"You just called yourself a _slut_?"

"It's not something I take any pride in because you shouldn't take pride in what or who you are," Kenny explains not missing a beat. "You take pride in what you do. And what I said deserves some explanation. A slut is not the same as a prostitute or even a whore. I'm not a prostitute because I do not put a price on sex. To me, an experience like that is priceless and to put value on the act is…cheapening it. And I think it's insulting to have to pay for sex when the best things in life really are free."

"Okay, but what would you say about what we are gonna do in a few hours?" Holly counters. "Are _we _sluts for what we're doing?"

"You make this whatever you want to be," he answers. "I'm just of the school of one who no longer wants to lie to himself. I'm fucking fed up with the hypocrisy and the lies of the media and society and religion all working in cahoots to turn me into a puppet of the system. I'm tired of them presenting…false depictions of what a good man or woman should be thereby undermining the great people folks have in front of them at that very moment. Be what you want, just don't let something like sex come in between a good thing. If you…cannot see yourself as being monogamous, why be with someone that is? That's asinine! Those two people will never make it work because eventually, he'll cheat, she'll get pissed and they'll all air out their filthy laundry in divorce court! I'll put it this way, how long do you think I would be with Zoey if she didn't approve of what I do?" The question, which is rhetorical, garners nods across the booth.

"So it's inaccurate to call a swing session slutty behavior. You _can_ call this an affair or a one night stand. You can even say 'Hey, I'm just doing this for me,' which you are, but call this whatever you want. Something called the two of you to be bisexual swingers. You have to have had a story or a background rooted somewhere to a moment or several points in time that made you want to try this, even if it's just once. I couldn't do monogamy. It's grossly overrated because after time, though _no one _wants to admit it, you get bored. If it didn't happen, you would find a husband or a wife at age eight keeping them for life, and that just doesn't happen. That's why we have so many extramarital affairs on both sides which lead to unnecessary divorce. With Zoey and I being in an open relationship there's no way I can cheat. If Zoey or I see someone we like, we just bring them into the fold."

"I want to have another girlfriend, but I'll only do it if Kenny can find someone for himself."

"Like a concubine, Zoey?"

"Exactly. And, Holly, the only reason why I haven't done it is because I want to go at the same pace as he does. That's why we've only brought in couples to swing with so far. If you're wondering, I'm bisexual in name only. Had it not been for this guy here, I'd probably be steady with another girl. Despite that, I love Kenny and I feel like I can tell him anything and I'm very intimate with him, which is something I don't feel I can do with just anyone, even with my own parents. I'll be very blunt; I swing because sometimes…I just need some pussy. I mean…"

"It's okay," Holly assures, trying her best to hold back more laughter. "I think you just about said it all."

"You know, I'll—I'll let you two know what led me to do this a little later, but you talked for a moment about how your parents received Zoey," Conway recollects, "I'll say this; Holly's parents, who are now in their mid-60s, did not really give me as critical an eye as I thought they would given that I was dating their youngest daughter. But like I said earlier, Holly Rock has eight older brothers and sisters to do the job for her mom and dad. Most of them liked me, but a few thought that I was stalking them because I'd show up in the oddest of places. Can you believe that?"

"Well Dawn told me stories about how you'd do that very thing," Kenny answers. "Maybe you don't know your own ability…Loren."

"Dude, ix-nay on the ame-nay. Okay? And either way, you can't say that all of the members of _your_ family showered Zoey with love the moment you brought her home."

"No, you're—you're right."

Looking at Kenny, expecting some sort of explanation, Zoey asks him bluntly, "Would you care to tell them about how I almost had to kick your aunt's ass for something she said about me?"

"Zoey," he responds almost as a defense mechanism, "my Aunt Florence, like both of our parents, just needed some time to get used to it! So some of the things she said…she doesn't necessarily mean."

"Kenneth," Zoey responds, causing her boyfriend to do a double take, "two things. Stop making excuses for that senile bi…woman. You know and I know that your Aunt Florence hates my _guts_. She fucking _hates_ me and doesn't mind telling people that she is the reason why you're so fucked up now. And the other thing of note is that you talk about her saying things she probably doesn't mean or speaking out of order. Well, if anything, I think you get it from her and that's the reason why you keep defending her the way you do. She reminds you of yourself and nobody loves you more than you do, Kenny!"

"Damn! That's harsh!" Holly exclaims. "Well, what were some of the things she said that made you want to beat her senseless?"

"There is nothing in the world that she said…"

"Oh, shut up! There you go again; defending your aunt even after all this!"

"Well, maybe I have a love for my family like Holly does," Kenny says in an attempt to save face. "I'll just say that…"

"You don't have a goddamn to say, man! Face it; your aunt hates me because she thinks that I introduced you to…the evil. She thinks I made you bisexual like I put a curse or a hex on you or some crazy shit like that! She took one look at me and rearranged her face when I came through the door. 'Oh, you can't possibly be serious, Kenny,' she said. 'The girl looks like she should be at a construction site or digging a ditch; not being a mother to children or a partner for life!'"

"All right, come on now! That's very unfair," Kenny replies tentatively. "Don't you think you're being…even a bit harsh? A lot of that has to do with the times and upbringing and…my aunt comes from a time and a place where…what we're doing was practically unheard of! How can you possibly expect her to understand? Honestly!"

"More excuses, Ken," Zoey says, now carrying a very devilish smile on her face. "The bottom line is that she hates the fact that I'm more of a man than you in many ways."

"Well…"

"And let's not forget her exact words to your folks during the cookout where you introduced me for the first time to your extended family. She thought I was outside getting something to eat, but I came back inside to hear his father's sister chew them both out for allowing him to be with me. She asked them, 'How can you two idiots let Kenny date that bull dyke?' And yes, she did call Kenny's folks idiots."

"Well, you gotta admit one thing, Zoey; she _was _half right."

"Oh my God! Please…" Zoey exclaims while Conway and Holly apparently find the big mouth's remarks the most hysterical thing of all time as other tables and booths look in their direction to see the young couple clutching their stomachs as they become short of breath due to their laughing streak. Shaking her head slightly, she makes the statement "I hope you both choke. I need to go to the bathroom."

"Zoey…Zoey—ha-ha-ha…Zoey, I'm sorry! Forgive me, girl!" Conway apologizes before the coordinator can get up from her seat. "What the hell are you gonna do? It's Kenny. He's worse than the mother on _The Golden Girls_ and he doesn't have an excuse like a stroke, either." He gets up from his seat, but it is to get a final plate of food before dessert.

"Zoey, we're sorry," Holly says, even though she's still laughing. "Anything we can do to make up for this? I mean, in all fairness that came out of nowhere. Some of the best humor does that."

"And we've all made fun of each other tonight," Kenny adds. "What's one more joke on the fire?"

"You're something else, man," Zoey answers. "I can't be mad at you for long." Standing up at last, Zoey signals to Holly by waving her hand back and forth a few times and then pointing to her boyfriend before she smiles from end to end and leaves for the little girl's room.

"So, Holly, how did you like the stuffed chicken breast?" Kenny asks while the three are together.

For his question, he gets a hard slap across the side of his head before Holly answers, "It's pretty good. I just wish it had more spice…and that was the Zoey special. No hard feelings, right?"

Holding Zoey to a 'no hitting' policy during Lent, Kenny should have known that Zoey would stoop so low in the name of hurting him by having friends do the deed for her. "Zoey!" he screams, channeling a British metal star with his loud call of bewilderment.

* * *

Using her left hand, which she has rarely ever done to knock on a door, Kelly waits for either her mother or father to come to the door and come downstairs to her hotel room. She knocks a total of five times and then waits. Hearing some rustling behind the door means that there will be little to no wait for the coordinator's trainer and brings relief to her face. Now looking at the whole situation with a logical mind, she would like nothing more than for this to be out in the open and for everyone to be informed about the latest news in her life.

Thankfully, for Kelly, the rustling does not take much time until the door opens with her mother Julia on the other side. "Kelly!" she exclaims before wrapping her daughter up in a bear hug.

"Hi, mom," she replies as Julia lets go and gets a good look at her Kelly, paying close attention to her right hand.

"I see that your hand is in a cast," she says before calling to her husband to come to the door. In just a few seconds, Erik comes into the picture and gives Kelly the same treatment as his wife did just scant seconds earlier and adding a kiss into the equation.

"So how's your hand, sweetheart?"

"Dad, just as I thought; I broke five bones!" Though she ebbs a peculiar type of excitement about the injury, inside there are two very clear and very real things that are fueling the feeling within. The overjoyed feeling does fade, though, and Kelly becomes more than just a bit downtrodden due to the circumstances surrounding how she got a cast for all her troubles. "I broke them…it was just a big waste. Marina just…"

Erik has had enough. He knows that Marina did more harm than good by even entering into his family's life and does his best right here and now to make things better. Father does indeed know best. "You don't need to say anymore, honey. It was her fault. She couldn't handle her problems without bringing other people in to shoulder her burden. You gotta move past this, though! Yes your first shot at love didn't work out, but you've got a great girlfriend and you plan on proposing tomorrow. Things are looking up, Kelly! Marina doesn't deserve you and I'm not just saying that either." Looking his daughter right in the eyes, he makes the statement, "You are beautiful, Kelly Cruz-Marin. You know this and I'm sure May can't stop telling you that some days. Marina is dead so forget that distraction and focus on your love with your wife-to-be."

Attempting to compose herself Kelly has to admit that her dad is right. "You're right. Thanks dad."

"Speaking of May," Julia interjects, "where is she? I thought you went along with her to the hospital!"

"I did, and that's the reason why I came to see you personally instead of calling. May's getting her parents and I came to get you. We both have something to tell you four."

"Is their something wrong, Kelly?"

"No, mom," she assures. While attempting to keep a very apparent smile off of her face, Kelly adds that, "Everything's fine. We just want you to come to come to our hotel room for a brief meeting. It's really important and it won't take long."

"Okay, let's go do this," Erik declares as he and his wife follow their daughter down the hallway and to the elevators going down to floor eight and room 835 of the Slateport Milton. The ride down the elevator is mostly uneventful save a few stops as they come down floor by floor. Erik and Julia do not ask their only child what this meeting entails even as the trio makes it to the eighth floor and walks down yet another hallway until the youngest one comes to one of the many hotel doors. Pulling out an object the size of a credit card, she slides it inside and then outside of a strip near the door handle.

When a green light comes on, she can tell that the door is open so she turns the handle and opens the door to find her girlfriend and parents sitting on the two beds.

May gets up from her seat on the bed upon seeing the Marins. "Hey baby!" she greets before giving Kelly a quick peck on the lips and asking everyone standing to have a seat and in just a few seconds time, Kelly takes her place with May on one bed while the moms sit on the other bed and the dads occupy the two chairs in the room.

"So," Caroline begins, "May told me that you two had something important you wanted to discuss with us, so go right ahead. You have…"

"Sorry to interrupt, honey," Norman apologizes, "but two things, Kelly. One, I see your cast. Is your hand broken?"

"Yes, sir, but…that's not the reason why May and I called this meeting."

"Okay, then. I _did _have a feeling that there was something else involved. But the other thing is…I couldn't help but notice that…beautiful ring around your necklace, Kelly. My mother wore a ring just like that. Do you mind if I have a look at it?"

Examining the necklace for a bit, Kelly feels more than just a fleeting chill courtesy of Norman's remarks. In just a minute, maybe more or less, the teen will inform him that this ring and the ring he is talking about are one in the same. "Go ahead," she answers and May's father gets up from his seat to get a good look at the band around Kelly's necklace. With a keen eye, he gets a view of the jewelry from every angle imaginable.

"Amazing," Norman comments as he takes his seat back in the chair. "This looks _exactly_ like my mother's ring!"

May has had enough and can not stand to hear any more assumption. "That's because it is, dad. That's grandma's ring around Kelly's necklace. I gave it to Kelly."

"Wait a minute, May. Now you know the story behind that ring." Speaking to the Marins, he says, "Guys, my dad saved for over two years to get that ring for my mother. It was his engagement…" and then, it hits him. He becomes wide-eyed, his breathing grows shallow and he starts to get chills. "Oh my…"

One question stands out in his mind. It is something he has no choice but to ask, but Norman doesn't get the chance. "You proposed, May?" Caroline asks her daughter while shaking and with tears in her eyes.

"Yeah," she answers, nodding her head and tearing up herself. "It was eating me up inside, mom. I had to get it out and make sure that this was what we really wanted. Please understand that grandma gave me this ring a while back and said to give it to the most important person in your life. I—no: _We_ planned this meeting to let you know in all fairness that we are officially engaged and will get married some time in the future."

"We just want your blessing, guys," Kelly adds. While holding May by the shoulder, she continues, "Mom and dad, I've talked to you about this several times. You know that I wanted to propose to May after the Grand Festival so our heads were clear and we could plan with no distractions…but I'm glad May did it because this planned proposal would have still been on my mind until this weekend ended. But we've agreed to marry and May told me that I can still propose tomorrow night on center stage if she wins. I obviously can't put the ring on my finger, so I'm wearing it right now and this is the reason why May's not wearing my ring; I haven't shown it to her as of yet."

"I'm gonna do this guys, whether you want me to or not!" May asserts. "I'm sorry for being so up front—so blunt about this, but…I'm not doing this for anyone else but me and my love. If I have your blessing, fantastic! If not, then oh well. I love Kelly, and you both know this. We can make this work!"

"Yes you do, and I have a feeling that you can," Norman silently responds. "And the only thing that I see as an issue is…you're only seventeen years old, May!"

"You were young when you and mom got…serious," May defends, the tears coming out of her eyes just a bit quicker than before. "I mean, you said it yourself; you could tell that Kelly and I are in love without us telling either of you."

"I did, but I didn't think marriage would come up for…at least another year or two! I forget sometimes that you've been together for one and a half years!"

"Well we have, dad! Nothing's gonna stop me. It's all coming together; can't you see it, mom? It's happening! I've found my love and I don't wanna let her go for anything and it's not as if we're going to the chapel after this talk; I just wanna keep going! I know you know that feeling! Your mom and dad objected to you marrying dad when you did, but what happened? You've had a _great_ marriage! You've had one that's lasted. You didn't listen to your parents and I gotta warn you both; whatever you tell me, I plan on marrying my girl. I'm sorry if that's not what you want to hear, but I just know deep down in my heart that this can work! Please, just trust me! Let me have this, please!"

Running short of breath due to her rant on the fact that she is ready for matrimony, May brings her head down to catch it once more and wait for a response of some sort. Kelly can now see Caroline and Norman in what appears to be conference. They whisper back and forth to each other about some subject; likely their decision. The room is quite silent and the Marins have not said much at all. As was said before, they agree with the proposal and give their blessing. They are one part of this grand equation with the other part attempting to figure out all the facts before rendering a choice in the matter.

As May turns her head up, she sees the sight; Norman nods to Caroline and then she does the same back towards Norman and then they turn to the two teenage girls sitting together on the other bed.

"May," Norman begins, "I hope you understand…"

"No," she whispers, fearing the worst.

"Just let me finish, please. I want you to understand…that giving you your blessing to marry Kelly is not easy for me or your mother to do. I love you and I knew that I'd eventually have to let you out on your own one of these days. I didn't think it would be this…taxing on my soul. I know that this is different, though, but I respect that. You two can care for yourselves and have the resources to live a great and long life. Age just keeps sticking out in my mind though; it's like a sore thumb, but you're right. I was not that much older when I got with your mom and I did it nowhere near as mature as you two and not as able to take care of myself on my own, much less a family."

"Dad, what does this all mean? What are you trying to say?"

"Honey, it means that we still have some reservations about all of this," Caroline admits, "but for now…you have our blessing."

It takes a second, or maybe less. Everyone in the room awaits some sort of reaction from the older of the two girls. Though the room is set at room temperature for now, May is now experiencing the same chills her fiancée, mother and father felt just a few minutes prior to her.

There is no containing her happiness as she bawls her eyes out of whatever water remained in them and rushes toward both of her parents to give them an enormous embrace. Still crying, she finds it within her to say, "Thank you both! This means the world to me. I promise you guys, I will not rush to get married. I just wanted to know if it was okay."

"It's okay, May," Caroline whispers into her daughter's ear. Norman lets go of the hug to get up and go towards the Marins, including Kelly.

"Kelly, stand up," Norman requests. Now standing next to her future father-in-law and having to look up only slightly, she feels the soft and comforting hands of the man on her shoulders. "Welcome to the family," he says causing Kelly to smile and mouth the words 'thank you' to the family patriarch. "Take care of my girl, okay?"

"I guarantee it, Norman," Kelly promises and now they come together in a hug with the rest of the Marins joining them not that long afterwards.

"I've got just one question, mom," May says while rocking in her mother's arms, "what made you and dad say yes?"

"The one thing that kept us from giving you your blessing was age…until we realized that you two had everything else in order to make this work just like you said. You'll get older and even more mature as time goes on and you'll learn more. So…all you have is time…and our blessing. Age is only a number; those are the words I told my parents when I said 'I'm marrying Norman Maple whether you like it or not.'"

"Thank you all so much for this," May says. "I'm the happiest girl in the world!"

"Well, I have every intention of making you even happier and that includes tomorrow's Grand Festival."

"Kelly's right," Julia responds. "You have a big day tomorrow."

"We should let you two have your space…and your rest," Caroline speaks. "Norman, let's go."

"We should be going, too, dear," Erik remarks. His wife agrees and they leave with a dual hug of the newly engaged couple. "Good night, you two and congratulations!"

"Sweet dreams, girls!" Julia whispers as she leaves May and Kelly's hotel room with Erik and heads back upstairs to their room. Soon afterwards, the young couple gets more hugs from Maples who wish the same luck for the teens as the Marins did. They leave for their room and leave Kelly and May alone in their space.

"Oh!" Kelly exclaims in relief as she falls back first on the bed. "Can you believe it, honey? Can you believe how far we've come in such a short amount of time?"

"No," she answers while standing by the window and looking at the night sky and clouds forming off in the horizon. "But I'm so glad it happened! Nothing's stopping us now, Kelly." While still looking out in the city, May gets some sort of inspiration and suddenly rushes to Kelly, who is still on the bed, pouncing on her while she rests. Coming face to face with her betrothed, she gives the younger girl a kiss, saying "Let's celebrate! Just the two of us! What do you say?"

"It is late…"

"Come on!" May counters. "When else are we gonna celebrate something like this? Please, Kelly?"

How in the world can she say no after that? "Okay, but we have to get back here to the hotel before eleven o'clock because we need to get some sleep. Is that a deal?"

Sealed with a kiss between the two, May says "Deal," and lets Kelly up from the bed. Grabbing keys, wallets, carry-on bags and other accessories, they turn off the lights in their room and head out into the hallway, locking the door behind them.

Arm and arm they walk saying sweet nothings and talking about initial wedding plans, though only speaking of the basics and not yet considering every little detail.

"A part of me can't wait," May admits, "but we've gotten this far waiting. What can't you wait for?"

"I can't wait to say 'I do'." Kelly then admits, "I know I'm gonna cry like a baby, but it doesn't matter. All that matters is that on that day, I will become Mrs. Kelly Cruz-Marin Maple."

"Oh, that is just disgusting!" the two hear someone say before they can make their way to the elevators.

Turning around, Kelly and May see the true colors of two people who've always been good friends. One is a young mother and the other is a young teen wrapped in her arms with her eyes shielded from the sight before them. "Savannah? Sandra? Look, this is something…"

"Save it, May," Savannah interrupts. "You actually call yourself a role model to young kids and here you are with that…girl wrapped around your arms talking about taking each other's names? You're both insane. You need help."

"Hey! Hang on a second!" Kelly counters, very perturbed at Savannah's comments. "Yes, let's just get it out in the open right here and now. We _are_ an engaged lesbian couple and do plan on making it official soon, but I don't see how the hell that effects May's status as a role model to young girls out there who want to be coordinators. Explain yourself, please!"

"My girl here would _never_ consider you two role models and neither would the Mothers for Pokemon or their kids," Savannah says in a great deal of scorn. "You're really sick if you think that you can just walk around like you're just another couple in love. Well, I've got news for you two; you're not. Be prepared to face consequences for living in this…fantasy world of yours."

* * *

A/N: Oh, boy! Savannah is pissed! What else does she have to say and how will Kelly and May react? Find out next chapter. Also, this is where Harley and Max meet up again; Drew puts Damien to bed just like Jimmy and Marina. Much more is coming in chapter 35!

Until then, it's been Rave!


	35. War to Settle Scores

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Lucy, Brock and Max hear some details about Harley's early life from his parents, Bo and Campbell. Max grows tired of the stories and decides to see Harley for himself. The Swinging Four learn about how Zoey and Kenny became bisexual swingers and how a certain family member of Kenny's reacted to Zoey and her appearance. Kelly and May sit their parents down and ask for their blessing to get married as they have officially become an engaged couple. While the Marins have already given it, it takes a while from the Maples. They eventually give it and leave their girls alone with some reluctance. Kelly and May decide to celebrate out on the town, but get derailed by very opposing remarks from Savanna Van Hollen with her daughter Sandra nearby as they hear them talk about their upcoming wedding.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 35- War to Settle Scores)

* * *

"Mom? Mom, let go of me! I can't believe you would say things like that to our friends!" Sandra frustratingly speaks. While she asks for this, she also gets away from the grip of Savannah and stands closer to her of age peers, Kelly and May.

"Sandra, what are you doing?" her mother inquires. "Get the hell away from them! Mind my words, Sandra! I know what I'm talking about here. Those two…girls are bad news and if you hang around them you will regret what happens!"

After the warnings from her mother, the daughter begins what amounts to a mini-rant, saying, "First of all, I am not your little girl anymore. You don't have to shield me from the evil or protect me from things _you _think are not good for me. I am not as innocent as you might think. To be quite frank with you, I see this happen all the time. This is happening all over in contests and conferences I travel to—it's happening everywhere! You know your buzz words no longer work mom! People are sick and tired of hiding this and I have to agree with them! What have they done that is so bad?" Pointing to both Kelly and May, she makes it clear to Savannah that, "These people are my friends, mom, and they are going to stay my friends for a long time. The fact that they are in love with each other means nothing to me. Why should I care about what goes on in their bed at night? I just wish them the best, support them and just move on with matters. I worry about me first, mom, and so should you."

"It's our lives, Van Hollen," Kelly adds with some scorn in her words. "You act like _Mothers for Pokémon_ is the moral police of coordinating, but you don't speak for the rest of those members and I know this for a fact. I've taught their children, Savannah, and I have an excellent repertoire with their parents. Will the fact that I am a lesbian change that at all?" Scoffing, she warns the older coordinator, "Don't you dare tell me that we aren't role models because that is an out and out lie!"

"You two ought to be ashamed of yourselves. Sandra, come back here…_now_!"

"I'm sorry, mom, but no," she replies. "Usually I agree with what you say, but not this time. You are way off. I never suspected that you would be homophobic."

"Sandra," she begins wanting to break down and rationalize her words to her daughter, "don't get me wrong. I don't hate gay people, but I do hate the fact that they act like what they do is no big deal. They're pushing this so-called lifestyle on you and I by making it look normal."

"I don't feel like I'm being forced to be around them and even if I did not approve of what they were doing, I can always turn away. That's how their behavior becomes such a big deal to you mom; you make it one. And…you almost act as if you are scared that if I hugged May or gave Kelly a congratulate kiss for their engagement, that I'll turn out to be just like them."

"What—no!" Savannah contends. "That's ignorant!"

"Oh, really?" May interjects, saying her first words in quite a while. "Thinking that your daughter could likely be turned gay by us is ignorant but the idea of Kelly and me being together is still disgusting? Wow, I don't believe it. Excellent consistency there with your parenting, Savannah," she facetiously commends. "There is certainly no double-talk or contradictions in what you are saying."

"Shut up, May!" Savannah warns, feeling the heat from her coordinating peers. "You don't know anything about what it takes to raise a child! There are some things that you have to say to children in order to make a point or take a stand. Allowing…kids to run amuck everywhere causes problems! That's not something you would know about, though, seeing as you can't have children with Kelly!"

Keeping a steady glance in the face of Savannah's prodding, May just answers to the detractor before her. "You're right," she admits, "but the fact is that there is more to life and living than having children. No matter what happens, what I do here does count here in some way. So you have me on that. It doesn't matter, though. My mother always taught me that there is more than one way to skin a Skitty. Naturally, Kelly cannot give me a child, but there are treatments we can invest in or we can take part in a little thing called adoption.

"So you see, Savannah, even when you are right, you are still wrong," May concludes.

"And if I may say my peace on the matter," Kelly interjects, "I think that my fiancée will make a _fantastic_ mother and her children that we will raise together will be great as well."

"Oh my—Sandra, did you hear that?" she questions with her voice raised up more than just an octave or two. "Did you just hear that? A girl just said that her _fiancée_ will make a great mother! You can't tell me that what Kelly just told me is no big deal. Hell, you can't say that what came out of her mouth is normal!"

"Hey, what the fuck does 'normal' mean anyway?" Kelly snaps at Sandra's mother. Before she can get closer to Savannah, May holds her back. Had she been given just a bit more room, she would have given Savannah more than just a piece of her mind. Instead, she can only go so far as her bride to be keeps her tethered close by with a waist lock.

"Kelly, calm down!" May begs of her while keeping the restraint very tight.

"So, I'm not normal, Savannah? Is that what you're trying to say, bitch?"

Gritting her teeth at the remark, Sandra can only conclude in her mind that the truth hurts. Turning to Kelly, who made the aforementioned inquiry, she asks her to settle down so she can make a point without having to make a scene. It takes half a minute or so but the Academy professor does listen to the words of a good friend and calms down for her sake.

"Look, in any other case I would have slapped the taste out of your mouth for calling my mother that word," Sandra explains, "but I have to agree with you."

"Sandra!"

"Mom, you're acting like one right now! I hate to say it, but they make a good point. If you don't like it, keep your peace and leave them alone!"

"Honey, listen to me. You don't understand what I'm talking about because you're young. You don't understand that they are challenging how we have lived our lives for many years. Who knows what this could mean? Who knows how people will be affected by this?"

"Well, mom, to be honest we won't know unless we find out," she contends. "That's the reason why we take risks. We don't take them because they are easy but because they are hard. People take risks because they feel in their heart that it is the right thing to do, no matter who says they are wrong. But if we want to live how we want, we take chances and keep our heads up in the face of criticism for something as strong as love. You took a chance at love mom."

"Sandra that was a long…"

"Mom, let me finish," she interrupts. "When you were young, about the same age as May and Kelly, you took a chance at love. You told me that you never regretted falling in love even if dad was killed six months before I was born. You told me, mom, to never take love for granted, but I think that you are doing exactly that because of the people involved. Why, because they're both girls? Love is blind, mom. It causes us to do things we _never_ thought we'd do. I'm sure when they grew up; Kelly and May did not expect to spend their lives with one another. They never thought that they would find each other but they did, mom. They grew up and Kelly and May realized that they would rather…give up than not be in love. Who can't stand behind that, mom? Who can't…who can't root for that?"

"I'm sorry, but…this goes against everything I've ever been taught!"

"So you go by everything grandma and grandpa taught you? You never went against the rules they put in place for you? Am I right?"

"Sandra…"

"No, mom! For Pete's sake, it's the year 2010! You really need to grow up and understand that times are changing, or you will get lost!" With these words Sandra walks away from the scene, presumably to go back to her hotel room.

"Sandra, come back here!" Savannah pleads with her daughter. Realizing that Sandra will not come to her, she goes in the same direction as the young teen by turning the corner to another hallway without speaking to May or Kelly in the process.

"What's got to happen for that to not happen?" Kelly asks as Savannah walks out of her and her fiancée's eyesight.

"It's hard to change people, honey," she answers while wrapping her arms around Kelly's waist. "I won't worry about Savannah, though. I'm not even thinking about her right now. Why should I when I have you on my mind 24/7? Now I believe we were about to celebrate our soon to be union. Where do you say we go?"

"Well," Kelly begins, "you know this doesn't have to be something big, right? I do remember seeing a stand that had ice cream on Friday afternoon. I don't know if they'd be out this late, though."

"If they aren't, we can find another one out in the city. Now let's going before it gets too late."

"I agree. Come on," Kelly answers as the two of them walk hand in hand towards the elevator and to a possible ice cream cone or banana split with their names on it. With Savannah and her arguably hateful rhetoric behind them, the pair goes to enjoy something sweet after working towards their parent's acceptance of their engagement with great success.

It is a small reward but they will gladly accept it as they know that the biggest one is coming very soon.

* * *

Not even bothering to open up the door to his room, Max enters to find his older boyfriend laying down on his bed with his eyes closed and mouth slightly ajar. Indeed, Harley spent much of his time away from Max sleeping on the matter and thinking things over while his mother and father gave him all the time he needed to open up about what upset him. The room is contemporarily adorned with a dark blue and beige motif throughout. This includes the bedding, wallpaper and the lamps, three in all, which carry the same pattern in a striped form.

As he stirs from his sleep, Harley opens his eyes and needs to clear them a couple of times by blinking so as not to have his vision blurred any longer. He turns toward the door to see Max standing by the exit. "I thought I told you not to come here, Little Maximus," he says tiredly.

"And you wonder I don't listen to you when you tell me to do something."

"Did my wacko parents even try to stop you?"

"Well, that's the key word," answers the trainer as Harley sits up in his bed. "They 'tried' meaning that they used their words to convince me that going to you and confronting you would be a bad idea. That shit did not work. I'm fucking fed up with your parents and their stories…"

"_You_ are? You're not the one who had to live with them for the first eight years of your life!" he contends. "I'm sure they've told you the fake ID story."

"Hey, let's not get into that or we'll dredge up the wonders of jerking off. What I _do_ want to talk about, though, is the kiss."

"How could you do that, Max?"

"Simple; I didn't! Kenny forced himself on me. I had no idea he was…interested in guys at all."

"But you could've stopped that before things got really out of hand."

"I…you're right," Max admits. "Damn, you are right. I could've stopped, but I didn't and that is my fault. For whatever reason…I think I wanted to walk on the wild side for a little bit and see what it felt like. I know that when I…flirt with other guys it makes you really jealous."

"But that wasn't the case here," Harley interjects.

"I understand. But you have to believe that Kenny forced himself on me in the bathroom. I didn't do that to make you jealous or angry, even if I do think that it's funny when you're like that and you pitch your fits. Kenny thought I looked like Conway, which made me wonder 'Why the fuck would you want to kiss Conway when you have Zoey', you know?"

"I thought about that while I was here and…you make a great point. There are times when I could not tell you and him apart."

"That's just like I said! It seems like an honest mistake and you blew up over something like that! I might kiss someone but that doesn't mean that I want to…do the things we do with that person."

"You make another good point."

"May I sit down?" After a second Harley agrees to have his boyfriend sit next to him on the bed, which Max does almost immediately. "Let's talk some facts. Do you remember how we got together?"

"An ice cream sundae. Not the first one, but the one that would come much later," he answers, smiling at the memory they shared not that long ago. "You just came out to your folks and wanted some advice on dating. To my utter surprise I learned that you called May for some advice on who could help you in sorting out these feelings who then called me."

"And this was before I knew that she was going through something quite similar with Kelly and her going through the motions of the two of them just becoming girlfriends. You—during Johto, you really started to come out of your shell and not be this…vengeful asshole that my sister and I remember from years back."

"I hate to sound cliché, but I suppose time heals all wounds," Harley replies. "Spending time actually getting to know May did us both a lot of good because we learned that we had…a lot in common, you know?"

"You don't have to apologize for that because you've already done that several times. So…you remember that May asked you to show me around the various LGBT hangouts and just open up to the teens there."

"You said that the scene was nice, but that some of the boys you saw there were more interested in one-nighters and flings or just making out than anything else and a lot of them were also taken, which does nothing but deflate an ego if you strike up a nice conversation with a guy. I told you that it would not be easy and you asked me if I could offer some more help and we sat down for…the second sundae."

"Well, if I remember correctly, you were single and wanted companionship. You wanted someone that didn't mind taking charge when needed and had great intellect to navigate the different regions without a problem. I wanted to have an older partner by my side while I battled, as well."

"We've also learned about how we both…wanted to escape from an early age. Both of us wanted to get out of the shadow of our families; with you it was your parents and sister and with me it was just my parents. And then…you bravely told me that you were in love with me. You were fourteen and I was twenty-four at the time."

"And you were reluctant to do anything given our large difference in age," Max recalls, "even though I didn't give a damn about that. But I miraculously got my parent's approval when I went to them and told them everything about how I felt inside. I don't know why they said yes and accepted you last year, because they had all the reason to tell me no, but I'm sure glad they did. Because despite what people say, you are not self-centered or polar. In you I see someone a lot like me; someone always looking for more in their life than what they have, which is a hell of a lot. You're willing to walk away from a life of luxury and hundreds of thousands of dollars and the lavish settings that your parents have built for themselves to live life on your own terms. That speaks to someone's character more than most actions ever could. Plus you naturally have more experience than I do and I wanted a guide in that regard. I don't know if we'll last or not, but I get the feeling we both can learn from one another before this relationship is over."

"Before it's over…"

"I don't want it to end, Harley, don't get the shit twisted!" Max assures his boyfriend. "I feel like I've worked too hard to make it happen so why the hell would I want it to stop? Look, you now know that the kiss Kenny gave me means nothing, right?"

"Yeah, it was a big misunderstanding on my part."

"Well, I have a feeling it could have remained a big misunderstanding had you not blown up the way you did. You're a fucking hothead, Harley, and you know that's a pet peeve of mine! Had you thought this out with me and considered who kissed me, it never would have come to this! You never would have had to go to your folk's house and we wouldn't be here right now in this lover's disagreement. Have I said anything wrong right now?"

"No, but you aren't immune to losing your cool either."

"I never said I wasn't. Look, we have those things that make us different. Can't we just focus on what makes us similar…like our love?"

Unconscious maneuvers such as looking off to the side, dipping his head back somewhat and finally shrugging his shoulders lead to Harley leaning into Max and giving him a kiss on the lips, which he holds for longer than a relative's peck. Once he gets back into his regular posture on his side of the bed, the coordinator hears a question from the other end. "Do you forgive me, hon?"

"Well, like you said, you didn't do anything and I made a peak out of a valley by running off without really thinking about your side of the story. So I'll say that I forgive you…and myself."

"Fantastic!" Max exclaims. "That means we can get the hell out of here at last and I can give Kenny a piece of my mind if he's in his hotel room."

"Not before I get a crack at him first, Little Maximus," a comment that Harley punctuates by cracking his knuckles.

Max does not show the same type of enthusiasm as he rolls his eyes, though that likely had to do with his boyfriend referring to him by pet name. "Let's just go, man. The sooner I get out of this…place you once called home, the better." With this said, both partners rise up from their seats on the bed and leave for the exit from Harley's room back out into the main room of the condo to find Lucy and Brock asleep on the couch while Bo and Campbell enjoy some coffee in their mugs.

Holding back giggles as they watch the Queen of the Battle Pike lay across the former gym leader of Pewter City in an arguably offensive pose with their heads near one another's crotches, Max suddenly blurts out the words "Wake up, folks!" which shoots the older pair out of their seats and upright faster than a playing of _Reveille_ at 5:30 in the morning.

While the two of them catch their breath and get their bearings back in order, an unlikely observer offers equally unexpected commentary. "Why, Max, I never knew you had it in you," Campbell remarks, tipping her mug in the direction of the young teen.

"Thanks, Campbell."

"So everything is all right now, Max?" Lucy questions.

"Yes it is," Harley answers for his boyfriend. "As soon as the two of us find Kenny and…do bad things to him that I probably should not mention in front of my mom and dad, we'll be fine."

"That means we can go?" Brock asks. 'Please say yes,' he hopes in his heart of hearts.

"Yes, we can go."

"Aw, you can't stay longer, Harley?"

"No, mom. We really need to get ready for tomorrow and get a lot of sleep in when we support May during the Grand Festival."

"Well, it was nice to have you here with us for as long as you were," Bo says. "Maybe we'll stop by the stadium tomorrow and see you or catch you on television, right?"

"Maybe, but I do know that we must get going as soon as we can," Max answers. "Goodbye Mr. and Mrs. Holloway. It's been a pleasure as always."

"Thanks, Max," they respond.

"It was nice to see you again," Campbell adds. "Do come back again soon."

"I'll think about it," he concedes as he leaves the doctors' house with his friends and boyfriend closely in tow. If one were to poll the four young adults, they would find that a feeling of relief is common between the four of them. It is relief that they will no longer have to endure staying another minute inside of the Hammonds Tower penthouse with the good doctors. Sessions with psychiatrists typically last one hour, but less than half of that is more than enough for this makeshift quartet.

The only good thing about the stay is the lack of any particular bill which would have likely sent them to Slateport General Hospital.

* * *

Back at the hotel, coordinators who realize and understand that a good night's rest on Saturday is the key to success and victory on Sunday are in bed. Unfortunately, not all of these people are sleeping. Such is the case with Marina, who looks through her Pokédex and checks all of the possible Pokémon that she might have to face tomorrow afternoon. Next to her is Jimmy, who watches the Pokémon News Network while dressed in his pajamas and ready for bed. Marina is dressed in her regular garb which she wore during her appeal some hours ago.

"It is now eight o'clock on March the 13th and tonight, here on PNN," says the anchorwoman on television, "the countdown to the 2010 Hoenn Grand Festival in Slateport City continues. With seventeen hours remaining until the start of the second round and just over two hours or so before appeals at the stadium wrap up, the top sixteen that will compete in Sunday's single elimination rounds is beginning to come together with May Maple of Petalburg City still in the number one spot with a perfect score of fifty. Though she did not stay for a great length of time in the pressroom after her appeal, she and her personal trainer, Kelly Cruz-Marin, are very excited about their prospects for Sunday."

"Jimmy, would you please turn that station?"

Looking oddly at his partner to the right of him, he asks, "Why? I think you would want to listen to what May has to say for tomorrow."

As Marina turns from her Pokédex long enough to get a quick glance of her competition, she is not surprised to see Kelly standing right next to May, just like she did at the stadium. "Could you just turn it, please?" she again asks him, not meaning to raise her voice a bit to get her point across. "I really have to focus on the battling and seeing…"

"Hey, that's that girl that you saw backstage earlier!" Jimmy comments, interrupting Marina. "Isn't it? I mean, purple hair, black overalls, that pink ribbon in her hair and a gold chain around her neck. That—that _is_ her! Why is she wincing like that?"

"I told you I don't know her!" Marina defends while both Kelly and May speak on television. "Can't we drop this damn thing already? I'm sick of seeing both of them. I'll take care of May and her little girlfriend tomorrow. For now, I need to concentrate, okay?"

"All right!" he answers, putting his arms up in the air; a sign of his frustration. "I won't talk about it anymore if that's what you want and if you're that hung up about seeing May and Kelly on the television, you'll be glad to see that they're no longer on the screen. I just have a question to ask you, that's all."

"What is it, Jimmy? Honestly, I told you this before; I don't know Kelly."

"But she, apparently, knows you," Jimmy interjects. "She called you by name and said 'it's been a while', and you're saying she doesn't know you?"

"I don't know _her_!"

"Okay, but I noticed the last thing you said in that very snide comment you made towards the two of them; you…very arrogantly called Kelly May's 'little girlfriend'. What do you mean by that if you hardly know either of them?"

"Look, it's…isn't it obvious?" she asks, very flustered. "They're always together. One is the trainer to the superstar! Come on, it's a…rehash of almost thirty years ago with Martina Navratilova."

"Hey that's not cool, Marina," he interrupts once more. "They're just good friends and because you don't like them, even though you haven't met either of them, you say this? That's—that's not something that you should do, I don't care what happened."

"Even if you were in a toxic environment," Marina suddenly blurts out, "with a bunch of crazies who ruled the roost and had no true standing in the real world that you and I live in? Would that change your opinion on the matter? What if you met a military mother for the first time and one of the first things she shows you is her extensive _gun_ collection? What about a dad who watches documentaries with his daughter on Matthew Shepard and calls it 'educational programming'? Does that make things easier for you to draw a conclusion on someone or not?"

"Marina, what in the world does that have to do with _anything_?" he asks, almost yelling to get a word in during his girlfriend's ranting. "I have no earthly idea what you're talking about! Gun collections? Matthew Shepard? I don't see what this has to do with someone you don't even know!"

"Look, I just…I just need to take a break. Can you understand that?"

"You took a break when we went up to our skybox, one in the restroom leading to the hotel and now you want another one?"

"Just…can I at least have some fresh air? Can I have that? I feel like everything else I do has to be monitored like a hawk when you keep on harping about someone I don't fucking know! So just drop it and let me be!"

"I can't…I can't keep you here if you don't want to be here," Jimmy admits. "You want fresh air? You got it."

Walking directly up into the male's face, Marina says "Thank you," and then leaves her hotel room without another word to her boyfriend.

Slumping back down to the foot of the bed, he finds the seat he started with this evening. "I know there's something going on, Marina," Jimmy calmly states. "I wish I knew what it was and that you could tell me without feeling the way you do. How else would you blurt out all of that information on a whim? It just doesn't happen."

* * *

"Are you joking? I mean, is this a joke?"

"Nope. Since you lost the drawing of straws, you have to be our representative for this appeal."

"And besides, we did not put up five thousand big ones just so we could lose it. So if you're going to perform you have to do it the right way, Solana."

"You sons of—I am not wearing this crap!" Solana says as she looks at the clothing that her fellow Rangers have picked out for her. "This is a knee-length black skirt, a long-sleeved white blouse and a red buttoned-down, double-breasted blazer. This isn't me! Forget about it!"

"Well, you're not trying to be you," says her partner, Lunick. "That's the idea. We Rangers think that there is absolutely nothing to the coordinating game."

"And we're here as endorsers of this idea," adds ranking member Jack Walker. "Perhaps it's fate, and the fact that there is about three million dollars on the line for the champion, that led us here and by luck of the draw you get to lead us to that change." Leaning into Solana's ear, he warns her, "Don't you let us down, Lana. Do you have any idea how hard I have to work to get a thousand dollars just to put into this pool?"

"You're saying that, and you took part in the bet?" she replies so that the other team members can hear her.

"Three minutes, Roubanis!"

"Thank you," Solana calls to the director.

"Don't worry about the money, Jackie," assures Spenser, the leader of the Pokémon Ranger group of five who have come to Slateport for the weekend. "I think that even if we don't get to the second round, we can still get a positive return on our five grand. If not, you can always borrow baby, borrow and hope for the best…or hurt Solana for blowing your dough."

"Great vote of confidence for me, Spenser," she replies facetiously.

"I'm just here to help."

"Two minutes. Solana Roubanis goes on stage in two minutes!" the director announces.

"In any event," Ranger Kellyn interjects, "I really don't know of anyone else among us who could go out here and do this. I mean, in a division of training where style is equivalent to substance, a guy just can't compare. Especially the stock that it takes to become a Ranger."

"Kellyn, shut up. This whole…sexist deal about how girls are better at coordinating because of their dainty is really getting to me," says the lone female in the bunch. "I might be in the same boat as you as I don't see the big deal about it all, but don't make this into some sort of…war of the sexes. This all seems like glorified training and beauty pageants all rolled into one and remember that we are only doing this because of the money. When Robert interviews me about my appeal and what goes into the planning for it, I'll just say to hell with all of that and say why I did this and that is because of the money. I'm not planning to start a career in this Wild West show. I have no desire to do anything else in contests or Grand Festivals. I'm just interested in seeing how far I can go in this…coming out of virtually nowhere."

"One minute to go, Roubanis!"

"You just better make sure that you don't stink up the house when you go out there," Jackie begs of his comrade. "I checked the purse payoffs and if you finish in at least the top 150, you can get my damn money back and I won't have to ring your neck for not being 'remarkable'."

"Don't worry, Jack! This is a piece of cake. I just have Plusle attack for two minutes…string those attacks together in some way and I should place. After that, we just have to wait for our check to come through the mail in a week and we'll get our even split, just like our contract says."

"No, I have faith in Solana," Kellyn admits. "And even if I don't get my money back from this pool, I can get a bonus from just doing my everyday patrol."

"I'm not too worried about the money for the same reason," Lunick announces. "I recently did a bust in Swingtown on the Go-Rock Squad. Spenser, you said that a bonus might be coming my way in a couple of weeks."

"Yes," their leader answers, "but unfortunately there are taxes attached to that bonus so you may only see a small chunk of that successful seizure of their Capture Stylers."

Rolling his eyes after hearing the director say that Solana has fifteen seconds to go before her time, Lunick makes the comment, "Damn it! It never fails. You're only guaranteed death and taxes in this life. With my luck I might only get five hundred dollars when they're done taking their piece of the pie."

"Hey, guys. Let's not even worry about money right now."

"Ten seconds, Solana."

Contenting, the sole female Ranger in this group attempts to pump her teammates up by saying, "I'll just go out there and give it my best and we'll celebrate later tonight and tomorrow. Let's get our hands in here." Right afterwards, the other four Rangers put their right hands into a center and form a circle. "Rangers on three, ready? One, two, three…"

"Rangers!" they all chant in unison.

"And please get my money back or else!" Jack quickly adds much to the amusement of his male teammates and commander and the aggravation of Solana.

"I need to go now," she says before trotting past the curtain leading to center stage. As she leaves, her team sees on the backstage television that she gets a good reaction from the evening crowd as she makes the long walk to center stage.

"Let me tell you guys something in confidence," Lunick adds, "If you three are daring, I'll bet all of you guys five percent of your cuts in the deal that Solana makes it to the second round. Again, I really don't think there is anything to this coordinating deal at all and she can pull it off."

"Are you kidding me?" asks a young teen that the Rangers do not see. When all four gentlemen turn around, they see one of the brightest stars of coordinating, Dawn Berlitz, who looks very cross at the moment. "I don't work my ass off to hear crap like that from the likes of people who don't know what the hell they're talking about."

"Hey, if you don't believe us just look at Solana," Kellyn replies. "I know you're a big star in this form of training, but I don't see the big deal."

"You don't see the big deal? Well stick around for about five or ten minutes and watch a real professional at work when I go out there." Pointing to the television screen, Dawn adds, "Solana is someone I have a great deal of respect for, but you just can't learn this trade overnight. I should know."

"We'll see about that," Commander Spenser comments. "I've seen Solana grow into her position as a Ranger and her maturity is well beyond her years. Her ability to adapt to different situations has impressed me ever since she began training for her position. Indeed she has not trained for the Grand Festival, but that does not mean she isn't prepared, which is what most crafts come down to anyway."

"Fine, just don't mind me when I start to laugh at the absurdity of this whole stunt she and you are planning if she can't make it past round one," Dawn warns the Rangers as they see Solana come to the center of the stage.

* * *

A kiss is more than just a kiss for whoever receives one. This is especially the case for baby Damien, who rests calmly in his crib for the evening. For the very first time, he gets a kiss from his father who leans in and does not leave any emotion out of this action.

So as not to wake his son so late in the evening for him, Drew stands upright one more time and smiles in the direction of his creation while Solidad looks on from the doorway. "Good night, Damien," he says well below a whisper. "Pleasant dreams from now on. Daddy is here for good. I have no other choice but to be here with you and to make sure you have your needs taken care of."

"You better get some sleep yourself," Solidad remarks. "You do have a Grand Festival to compete in and it wouldn't to you any good to oversleep for that."

"You're right," he says, turning to his ex. "We should all get some sleep. Tomorrow is a big day." Walking out of the room to give his son some space, Drew knows that he does have to head back to his hotel to at least gather his items. There also remains the potential matter of running into his ex-girlfriend, though that is not weigh on his mind too much at the moment.

Solidad assures him that he can go, but Drew is still reluctant to do so. He promises to return and after everything that has happened in recent months it is difficult to believe him.

Nevertheless, he gets assurance from the mother of his son that it is okay for him to leave, which he does as quickly as he can so he can get back and not miss another minute.

* * *

A/N: Okay, some people I've talked to looked forward to Solana's appeal and that will take place next chapter. Also, Conway has in interesting story to tell about Paul but what does that have to do with him? All of that is coming soon.

Until then, this is Rave!


	36. Childhood and How to Wow a Skeptic

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Sandra defies her mother's wishes and stands by May and Kelly even after hearing about their engagement. The engaged couple decides to go with their plan and celebrate their engagement nevertheless. Max and Harley make up and decide to confront Kenny and let him know what they think of him. Marina cracks under the pressure of seeing Kelly on the news and leaves Jimmy to get fresh air. Solana along with fellow Pokémon Rangers Jack, Kellyn, Spenser and Lunick unite in a single bid to enter the Grand Festival. Solana represents this group, which does not see the big deal of coordinating. Dawn finds their entry to be very flippant and does not think their mission will succeed. Drew puts Damien to bed for the evening and makes a quick stop to his hotel to get his items and get back as soon as he can.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 36- Childhood and How to Turn a Skeptic)

* * *

With dinner winding down for the swinging foursome in The Stuff Shop, the focus now turns to dessert. While Conway and Kenny are conservative with their choices as the former partakes in a small slice of cheesecake and the latter decides on a bowl of strawberry ice cream with sprinkles on top, Zoey and Holly treat the unofficial fourth meal just like it is their absolute last. Holly fixed for herself a large sundae with brownies, nuts and drenched in enormous globs of hot fudge and caramel. Zoey has just returned from the buffet with her third helping of peach cobbler. To wash it all down, she also has a glass of chocolate milk.

"Is the dessert good, ladies?" Conway questions.

"Yeah," Zoey answers. "Why else would I keep coming back?"

"The law of diminishing returns makes me wonder why you haven't grown tired of having nothing but peach cobbler."

"I beg your pardon? The law of…what?"

"It's the law of diminishing returns," Holly remarks. "It's more or less a theory that after patronizing a product or service that you initially like a number of times, you slowly begin to like the item in question less and less." After a few seconds of staring at Holly, the two more experienced swingers collect themselves once more and nod their heads.

Kenny is especially impressed at Holly's knowledge. In front of all the people in the booth, he elbows his girlfriend and makes the statement, "Who says knowledge isn't sexy?"

"I sure don't."

"Well I can't take full credit for that," she admits. "Conway told me about that one day and after giving it a lot of thought, I realized that it makes a heck of a lot of sense."

"It does, honestly, but for now I want to know something else about you…and what you know." After taking a swig of her chocolate milk, the teen tomboy asks the older girl next door, "I want to know what moment or moments in your life led you to doing this? We've mentioned some reasons in abstract terms, but I really want to find out some specific reasons."

"I see," Holly replies while she continues to partake in her mountain of ice cream. "Well, I must tell you, this is where things get…pretty complicated and interesting all at the same time."

"Holly, I don't know if you understand it by now," Kenny interjects, "but the lives which Zoey and I live are the _definition_ of 'complicated and interesting'. I promise you; whatever it is, we've likely heard it before."

"I hope you're not embarrassed at this juncture because if you are then I don't think you're ready."

"Oh no. It's just hard for me to imagine that…it was these small moments in time that caused me to have feelings that have not left me even after more than a decade of living a mostly straight life. I don't want you to think that I'm ashamed of any of this but I do believe that many things should remain private."

"That's your right," her soon-to-be partner claims.

"Okay Zoey and Kenny. Here goes. It is not unusual for young kids at the grammar school age to have crushes on their teachers. I suppose it did not help that most of my male teachers were older men who often reminded me of my father or grandfather. I'm sorry, but I don't consider that look a turn on rather that look reminds me of an individual with great wisdom and someone to look up to.

"In any event, I will admit that I never had any crushes on my grade school teachers and this dates all the way back to the third grade. The crushes I did have were on my fellow students. Though they were the epitome of childhood crushes, they formed the basis of feelings that would develop later in life. Zoey and Kenny, do you remember how I told you both that most of my tween years I spent experimenting with kissing…in and out of restrooms and that was the extent of my sex life at the time like many other kids that age?"

"Yeah, I do."

"Well that experimenting _almost_ involved girls as well." Both Kenny and Zoey look at the oldest of the swingers with little to no surprise on their faces. Their only call is for Holly to define what 'almost' means. "The whole thing about me being confused had its real birth occur when I was thirteen years old. It happened when a new kid came to our city in Sinnoh with her family. Compared to my very traditionalist family brought up in a…not-so-strict Jewish and Christian household, she might have been a bad influence to most of us. But she was my age, we hit it off quite well and to tell you the truth, I have never met anyone so confident, charismatic, upstanding, and as good a role model for any girls out there as she was for her age.

"I know I should not throw out this word so cavalierly but 'radical' is the word that fits and describes her better than any other word. She wore tie-dye much of the time and dressed quite revolutionary for a young teen. I never personally saw anyone wear dreadlocks until I saw her. Not to sound racist or stereotypical but I've always associated that hairstyle with blacks and those living in the Caribbean. She was whiter than I am, though…and she was younger than me!"

"Interesting," Kenny remarks as his dessert becomes secondary while he hangs onto Holly's words. "Who was she?"

"Uh," she hesitates, "that…out of respect for her I will not say her name. She died not too long after I met her."

"Oh, man," Zoey laments. "She had to be what? Fourteen years old when she died?"

"Yes. She lived life to the fullest and held to her feelings on certain matters until her death. In any event, for the time I got to know her she taught me so much. I learned how important it is for young people to stand on their feet when needed but at the same time show respect to us all. She didn't do it in so many words but…the things she did and how she did them made all the difference in my mind. I admired her for her great spirit.

"We went to school together and no more than two weeks into her arrival, I hear the rumors that she played for the other team. Other friends of mine asked me to stay away from her or I might get turned gay myself."

"Ah, youthful ignorance," the redheaded teen says facetiously.

"I didn't talk to her about what my friends said about her because I didn't want to hurt her feelings but after a while, I really started to wonder if my other friends had a point or not. One day she invited me over for a sleepover and I wondered if and how I would address the matter. When I went there, I met with her parents again. They are great people and I'm happy to call them my friends even after so many years that their only daughter has passed on. That evening her parents left us to just enjoy movies, pizza and sleeping bag talk. After a while…I noticed things turning a corner in terms of the mood.

"The first thing I noticed was the…choice of entertainment. It was not so much that her parents allowed her to pick out 'R' rated movies but the types of movies we watched had a certain theme. I didn't really pay attention until I actually saw the films. The first one was…a bit more light hearted in nature. It was _Under the Tuscan Sun_."

"Hmm. Seems light when you think about it," Kenny interjects. "I remember that movie from not that long ago. Mom and dad saw it together and said that it was good. They also told me that they could have done without the lesbian couple expecting a child." After shaking his head for a moment, he then makes the claim, "That's a personal threshold for both of them that I'm sure they did not think they would have to be faced with when they were my age. For obvious reasons their reactions were different compared to someone like me, but I think that if you asked them now, their feelings on the matters might have changed some. Who knows?"

"Well, here's what I _do_ know," Holly continues, "even though I only knew her for…a year at the most, she was one of the smartest people I've ever met in my life. She knew that if I had any doubts or any questions about her intentions, I wouldn't bite and would likely turn away from her in disgust."

"Intentions, Holly?"

"If you haven't already figured it out," she answers, "she did have feelings for me and by the end of that night, she admitted just about everything to me. From that…warm up movie, she moved to _D.E.B.S._ and then she wrapped up the night with _Personal Best_."

"Damn! She pulled out all of the stops if that's the case!"

"Just listen for the rest of the story, Zoey," Conway cautions the younger girl. As his eyes slowly start to become red, his voice waivers as he says, "You just gotta listen. I know it sounds…unconventional, but there is a lesson to be learned here."

"By the time we got to the middle of that last film, the question came up. I kept telling her things about what my friends have been saying about her and…it's interesting that not once did she deny anything to me or say that none of it was true, but I never out and out asked her and she never said 'no' to any of my assumptions. So I kept just trying to put together the clues before she told me that she really liked me and thought that I was a sweet girl. She was attracted to me. 'Very much so' were her words to describe the feelings.

"She went into these lengthy discussions with me and her ultimate message was that she's been looking for a girl for a while and that there is no control of the heart. She asked me to consider us being…more than just friends. I made it clear to her that I did not know what to make of it and that I felt kind of scared thinking of her in that light. I asked her for some time to think about making a decision like that, with her and I essentially becoming girlfriends if I did say yes, and she gave me what I wanted.

"Back then, I did not know if I was in love with this girl or not," admits the young carrot top. "It begs repeating; I admired her. I loved how she showed no fear when our fellow classmates were as cruel as they were during that time. I liked how we both learned from each other and complimented one another. What I grew to learn during our brief time together was that she was very patient with me as far as waiting for an answer to her question from the night of the sleepover. After some time, I finally decided that it was true. I did have feelings for her…but only her. That made questions about my orientation even more convoluted than I once thought. It was my idea that if I learn more about her, we can go from that stage of being more than just friends to whatever we wanted.

"I called her that day and asked her to come to my house so that I could essentially tell her that we could be girlfriends. I wasn't too keen on the idea of being out and I wanted her to know that in this meeting." At this moment, Holly finds it difficult to continue with her story. She visibly begins to shake and hang her head low at the upcoming portion of her true tale. "Oh my God."

"Just tell the story, Holly," Conway assures his girlfriend. "You can't blame yourself for this. We've talked about it! This is one of the reasons why you were so conflicted, right?"

"I know," she tearfully replies, "but I never got the chance to tell her. She walked to my house that day and I'll never forget…the smile on her face. She just lit up our street that sunny day. Things really could have been just perfect that day. And then…I saw her walking across the street so she would be only two blocks away from my home. I faintly heard the sound of some sirens off in the distance, but I didn't really pay attention to them until I heard a horn blare and then a crash. I saw the girl I felt I loved…flying several feet in the air and then down to the ground with a thud that just…it didn't look good at all and I screamed louder than I've ever done in my life when that getaway car made a sharp turn through our neighborhood to escape the police. Witnesses at the scene say that my friend did not see the car coming until it was too late.

"I ran as quickly as I could to her and got my cell phone to call an ambulance. My folks quickly joined me and we waited for the EMTs to come. She was badly hurt, but had a pulse, which was good news. The ambulance came and we just waited. Mom, dad and a few of my siblings came along with me and we waited and waited. That's all we could do in that situation.

"At this point, they knew that the two of us, my friend and I, quickly became good friends...but I'm sure they had _no_ idea that we had these other feelings going through our heads. That's the reason why I was able to get away with bawling my eyes out the entire time. I saw the accident and was…traumatized. Her parents came in after some time and we all prayed for a miracle to happen. I felt good about it for a while because we kept getting good news, but the doctors continued to operate on her and we heard the news quickly begin to get worse. She lost a lot of blood and her heart stopped. Everything went downhill very fast. We prayed so hard that afternoon, but the word came at 5:07 p.m. on June 18, 2005. She died of an abrupt loss of blood to the brain; a hemorrhage. I'm taught not to use this word, but I hate that day and I hate that time so much.

With her voice breaking, Holly makes the conclusion even after all this time to consider what her decision would be. With tears in her eyes, the oldest of the four says, "I was gonna tell her yes that day. I was ready, but I never got the chance. She got snatched from me. It could have been the start of something like…what Kelly has with May and even Ash has with Paul, but…it apparently wasn't to be." Pounding the table, she laments, "It's not fucking fair! Her parents lost a great, beautiful daughter and…out of my own goddamn selfishness; I think I might have lost at the very least a great friend and at most a partner for life. That's why I always wonder and ask 'what if'. That's the reason I took this on. I had to know if I missed out or not. I don't know. Excuse me, guys."

"Sure," Kenny replies with sadness. "Take your time."

As Holly leaves to compose herself, Conway takes over the floor in her absence. "That is the story that I heard when she told me that she wanted to swing. There are a couple of other points that should be made. After the girl's death…Holly distanced herself from the situation and seemed to go in the same path as her peers in being boy crazy and she never showed any further signs of possibly being gay. She even had boyfriends before I came along, but not once did she forget about the young girl who could have become her girlfriend almost six years ago. She wears a black armband on her right forearm in her memory. The girl was also an Academy student who specialized in the training and breeding of flying Pokémon and that's one of the reasons why Holly has so many flyers in her arsenal. All of that is in her honor."

"Oh, man. That's so sad," Zoey exclaims while trying to keep the tears out of her eyes. "No wonder she was so emotional. If I went through that much with someone at that age only to lose them so…suddenly, I'd probably lose myself in my thoughts as well."

"Agreed," Kenny simply answers while attempting to keep his feelings in check as well. "Man, I don't know. I…that just—I would've never known that she even…"

"You never do know, Kenny. We all have very interesting stories to tell if we just listen for them."

"What about_ your_ story, Conway?"

"Well I did promise that I would tell you guys this story," he informs Zoey, "so here goes. It goes back to when I was just…five years old. It started back in kindergarten when a new student came to class that day. That student's name was Paul Marin and we as the established students were expected to make his transition to our class a smooth one.

"Back then, you would have thought that the Paul at age five and the Paul from age…all the way up to seventeen were two completely different people. During that time, he was a timid, scared young boy who did not seem to…know his place. He didn't seem to belong anywhere at all. I can understand it for a new kid to not feel like they belong somewhere, but I've seen new kids at every level of schooling and not once did I feel it as strongly as I did here.

"It really showed when he crossed those unspoken barriers of that age and played with girls just as often as he did the guys. Both of the sexes teased him for that tremendously and all of this happened during the first month of him being at our school. I could not count the number of times he would go to the teacher or one of the aides in tears because no one would play with him because he happened to see no problem with both boys and girls doing that.

"After a while, I got really fed up with all the undeserved teasing he got," Conway continues. "I stood up to my fellow classmates and told them that it wasn't cool to make fun of Paul. Some of the kids got it, and a few didn't. That's the way things are sometimes. When I stood up for him then, Paul wondered why I would defend him like I did. I told him that no matter what they say about you or call you, you do not deserve it. Then he asked me if I wanted to be his friend and I said yes."

"What kind of things did the kids call him back then?"

"Oh…kids were really starting to learn the buzz words, you know?" he explains to Zoey. "Paul would hear the word 'fag' on more than a few occasions. I mean, I could go on. You two get the idea, right? They knew the words, but they had no idea what the words meant or the effect that they had on the person they were directed to. The object was to get his goat and they learned these words from their backward parents who were behind the times and apparently could not keep those words to themselves especially with their young kids nearby. Well, in any event Paul and I became friends. We found out that we lived close to one another so we got to see a lot of each other after our time in kindergarten.

"Paul had an interesting household structure. His mother, Vivian, did a lot of work in Veilstone as a major contributor to the civil services. She was a special agent for the local police force in the city. For the time I got to know her, she was _really_ tough. She had to be, though. Her line of work required absolutely nothing less. She could be…really tough on both of them; Paul and his brother, Reggie. When he got teased as a five-year old and cried to his mother…she would barely hug him. I never saw it happen personally, but Paul has told me time and time again that she would hug him and Reggie sometimes…just not all the time. Paul and I can count more hugs that he got from his older brother than from his mom, though."

"What about his dad? How was he?"

"Sascha? Well, his dad was…I guess the safest word to use is different. He worked quite a bit promoting training to young fans and what not. That's what both the Marin brothers did during much of the 1990s. He was around a lot during that time, though. He was a cool guy and I always enjoyed spending time with him when he wasn't traveling. I always got the vibe that his sons also enjoyed being around Sascha more than they did Vivian.

"Not to say that she was mean. She wasn't. It's just that she had this…tough love approach that I was not always familiar with. You could say that her way of handling things was like the way Paul used to, but I'll get to that later. Even on Friday nights, we had no school so we could really sleep in, but I can't remember a Saturday over at Paul's where he or I slept over and did not get up any later than eight in the morning. Things were run very uniformly in the house so nothing really stood out. It can be a good thing at times, though. Paul taught me how to be neater and organized by how he took care of his space.

"Here is the…interesting part of the story. We had sleepovers a lot of the time. Just about every night we did that, he would thank me for being a friend. I said it was no problem and I liked being around him a lot. Now, keep in mind that both of us were only five years old at the time these sleepovers happened. Paul always wanted to be around me. He was a very affectionate person during his early years. Everywhere we went during this time; he would have his arm around me and tell people that I was his buddy, and even now, I thought that was cool. Whenever we would see each other, we'd give one another a hug. Hugging led to greeting each other with kisses and keeping each other warm with our covers during the cold winter nights of 1996.

"To me, none of it seemed out of the ordinary. I did it with my folks, Jordan and Seth when he came up. Dad always says that you should give your family your love and I considered Paul right up there with my family. As the months went along, Paul's words began to get much more serious in nature. He always wanted to make sure that I never…left him and that I'd look out for him when needed. I asked him why he felt as if he needed to know this stuff and he said…his mother was concerned about our closeness and he did not want to lose his only friend."

"Why was she concerned?" Kenny questions as Holly comes back to the booth. "You guys were just kids!"

"Conway is telling you guys his story, now?"

"Yes, Holly," Zoey and Kenny answer in unison.

"You okay, babe?"

"I'll be fine. I promise."

"Good," he replies, leaving his girlfriend a quick kiss on the cheek before continuing with his unique tale. "So, like I said, Paul's mother had some concern about the relationship that her son and I had. I did not understand the fuss and that's just what I said to Paul and he admitted that he did not like the strict rules of his house. My mom and dad did not really have a problem with us or I guess they didn't notice anything wrong with it. He…talked about growing up a lot as the winter became spring and the school year came close to wrapping up. He said that the best part will be that he won't have to follow his mother's rules ever again. More than anything else at that time, he talked in very abstract terms about leaving—about running away and not coming back."

"Every plan had you involved with that running away, right?"

"Yeah it did, Zoey. It was…pure bliss. That time is time I cherish like a good friend. I'll never forget the camaraderie and closeness that the two of us shared…and how painful it ended for us. By the end of it, kindergarten was almost over. One week or so and we would have our graduation. Just before that, Paul told me that he loved me. I did not really think much about it. He told me that he loved me a lot during that school year and I did not catch on to what he really meant until he told me that this feeling was…something different. 'Different how,' I asked him? He just said that he gets goose bumps whenever I'm around and that he gets nervous at times, too. I never heard that from him before and it caught me off guard. I wanted to know more and he kept saying something else. 'I don't know what else to say,' were the words.

"Not that long after that, Paul and his family suffered a tragedy. His mother had a massive heart attack. Because of her alleged great fitness regimen, Vivian held on for about two days until she died in her sleep. I was there at the hospital for one hour or so of those two days. Something happened between them during his mother's last hours. After the bereavement Paul told me that he made a huge mistake and that I was being disgusting for thinking like that because it's wrong, even if he was the one who instigated much of these emotions in me that I still have.

"We stopped being friends and thoughts of running away with him went just as quickly. He moved with his dad and big brother to a…nicer part of town, though it's always been my theory that the family wanted to get away from it all. The house had too many memories. Paul became very cold after that time and…took after his late mom, for sure. He had that…you can't even call it tough love, but he had it and—he later told me after getting himself back in order that his mother saw his feelings and wanted to steer him from those ideas and warned that he would not be respected unless he took power by the horns and…didn't let things like love or emotion make him into a weakling.

"So the years passed and we grew apart for a while. We…didn't become friends again until _much_ later, but I always acknowledged that I knew Paul from that time. He all but ignored me during this time and we just went on about our business as Pokémon trainers. We both have had a great deal of success over our careers. Like just about all of us, we'll hit a rough patch along the way. Paul was no different, but his losing streak from just over a year ago seemed to be compounded internally by the fact that he lived life as a closeted gay teen who attempted to show this macho attitude and have no one ever think of him as being anything less.

"A couple of things happened to him during that period. He got a chance to see Kelly and hear about his first cousin being in a successful relationship with May. That…warmed him up to the idea of doing the same, but it also caused a lot more confliction for him. Paul wanted to take ownership of all of these thoughts and decided he needed that time all to himself to get this done. He took a break from training and went on a…one might say, spiritual journey. He later said he wanted to find peace and know what that was. Whether it was God, love, family, friendship or the like, the one thing Paul wanted above all else was peace. He had not felt it for a long time and wanted to feel it so badly. Also, he was tired. Though he was one of the top trainers of this generation that did not mean anything to him! He was not happy, and he just wanted to be happy.

"He spoke to…some of the finest minds on the subject of what it means to be happy and when we reconciled, he said that of the many things people told him, power was not even among those relevant items that makes an individual happy and gives them peace. What they did mention, in fact, was that a man had to have power…but only over his own actions, which are one of the few things we can naturally control. Paul had to search for his own happiness and he did it. He volunteered himself to the different foundations for the terminally ill at their suggestion and even became a mentor and tutor to young school kids as a means of being charitable in the name of his good fortune compared to those who did not have it as well as he does."

"What—what about his brother and father during this time?" Zoey wonders. "How did they react to this…change of sorts that he had growing up…to now?"

"They welcomed it…whatever Paul they got, they welcomed with open arms. And of the many people in the world, Paul never turned a blind eye to the concerns of his dad or his brother. I think as long as he was not destructive or overtly violent, he could be okay in their eyes."

"But you make it sound as if he was depressed during this time and that he, like many others, went through his share of problems," Kenny extrapolates. "It's as if his mother putting the fear of eternal wrath upon him while on her deathbed was what it took to make him into this raging megalomaniac and that he just got worn to the cords after living so long like that."

"That's a great way to put how life really transpired for Paul," the older gentleman admits while tending to his glasses. "He just got worn out. The losing streak didn't help, but that was not the reason. He just had enough of living up to his mother's standards even if she's now been dead for more than a decade! So this was a complete transformation and he reached out when it meant the most. He went to Ash, apologized for everything and proved that he changed from the inside out. He even said much of what I'm telling you right now. Somehow, someway they got together and both now mentor young, aspiring trainers while they continue to live their dreams. This time, they are teammates instead of rivals.

"So, that's why I'm here. Paul…admitted to me at a young age these feelings he had. He got scared for several reasons and regressed into the Paul many of us remember some years back. I thought about it and really loved Paul…but like a brother, you know? I was unsure, but had a backseat to his relationship with Ash and I see how well that has turned out and the great union they share. I wonder if I could have had something just like that and that's why I'm taking part in swinging."

"Wow," Zoey interjects. "Those are two…really unique and powerful stories that you guys have there. I don't know—I can't remember hearing anything like that from the other couples we've swung with, right Kenny?"

"Nothing even relatively close to things like that. Often times, we get a couple that either wants to do it to please one or the other. Sometimes, one party finds out that the other is gay and wants to try it out like that. Sure we do get stories about discovery and curiosity, but few to none come with the raw psychology and thought process that yours did, Conway and Holly. I'll be honest, I am guilty of taking a lot of these sessions as nothing more than just sex, but that's only because I don't go into them with the idea that I'm gonna find love coming out. Shit, I don't know about you guys but I think I'm ready to ball."

"Yeah, we filled ourselves with fuel and now it's time to burn it off like were a bunch of hummers," the teen tomboy exclaims. "What do you say?"

"Well," Holly begins, her enthusiasm from earlier returning, "I say let's go!"

"But…before you two do that," Kenny warns while reaching into his pockets, "I have a list to give to you two. Just go to the local drugstore and pick up all of those items. That's part of your requirement while here to buy the condoms, lubricants and what not. Just remember to meet us back in our hotel room 835. Just knock on the door and we'll start from there. Is that clear?"

"Okay," Conway answers while skimming through the list. "So the two of us get these items and just go to room 835?"

"That's it. Now, if you two want to stick around for more dessert, you're welcome to do so. Otherwise, Kenny and I have to get the hotel room ready for your arrival." The more experienced of the four get up from the booth of a near empty buffet and bid the novices a temporary farewell until later.

* * *

"Solana whenever you're ready, you may begin," says one of the referees on the battle floor.

"All right, Plusle. Ready to show these guys that there's nothing to this?" Her obedient and cheerful electric mouse responds positively to Solana's idea and she lets the official know that she is ready to go. After a whistle, the clock begins and the Pokémon Ranger starts her two minute appeal. "Plusle, let's start off with thunder wave and just let it go for now. Don't stop until I tell you to stop."

While the appeal takes place, a curious crowd of sorts has gathered to see the moment happen. The union is mostly a homogeneous one as all crowded around a television set backstage are Rangers in the Fiore region…with the exception of one.

"I'll just be honest," Dawn mentions to the four Rangers watching the Grand Festival activity, "I don't like the choice of Plusle from Solana. I'm sure the four of you guys put together could have found another Pokémon for her that was not as limited in terms of its attack ability. Thunder Wave to start off may not be a bad idea. Who knows? I just…would not have gone this route without putting some _thought_ into my decision."

"Hey, like we said," Kellyn responds, "don't worry about Solana. If there is any one of us that can make the best of a not so advantageous situation, it's her."

"Guys, hold it," Spenser interjects. "I think she's about to make another command."

"Now, Plusle! Use agility! Calm yourself for what you're about to do for the crowd."

Nodding her head for a bit, Dawn admits, "It is good to build anticipation for the appeal. Enough of a build and the judges can even raise the appeal by a point or two."

"So are you convinced?"

"I did not say that, Jack. I only said that she…kind of grasps the object of an appeal and what you have to do for that. Just because you know that doesn't make you some sort of master, though. Let's just watch the end before we declare her champion. I don't know. Call me old school for thinking like that."

"All right, Plusle! It's time to amaze them! Let's see quick attack and again, don't stop!" And very quickly, Plusle charges in several different directions as if he were charging for an exit out of the stadium. The addition of agility in order to sweeten the speed of the loveable electric type did nothing but make Solana look really professional in terms of how she chained her attacks together for maximum effect. "Now, I wanna see thunder, but keep the quick attacks coming!"

Suddenly, from up above, it seems to rain bolts of lightning down to the ground. The direct current does not have any effect of Plusle, though. As they come and strike his body, he bounces off said bolts like a pinball and spins around the ring quickly as well. Those watching can only make out a bright orb of light on stage as it moves in different directions. With only a few seconds remaining a final command of swift, which sends several stars in the air and in other areas, puts the finishing touches on the appeal as the whistle sounds to end activity on the field.

Asking Plusle to cease action and return to her, Solana takes a deep breath knowing that by just winging it and having some knowledge of attacks, she has done just what she sought out to do for her squad. Giving Plusle an embrace, she receives the cheers and applause from the crowd and bows to the thousands attending.

While those in the stadium applaud what was a unique, cool and one might argue fun appeal, the Rangers backstage wildly cheer what they rightfully saw as themselves striking it rich through Solana's work. All four gentlemen talk about what plans they have with their money, even though the official score for the appeal still has not come up.

Still looking at the screen and the older female Ranger is one skeptic who has been turned to the thought of Solana possibly being more than just talk which mostly came from her teammates. While Kellyn, Lunick, Spenser and Jack continue to cheer and chant the name of their comrade, Dawn just looks at Solana on the stage. Slowly, a smile begins to creep onto her face as she realizes that the competition has come with an impact that she has not felt in a while.

'Enjoy it, Rangers,' she thinks. 'Luck always has a way of running out. My hard work won't fade away, though. Just you wait and see.'

* * *

A/N: Oh, you thought you were gonna find out the score now? Sorry, that's next chapter along with Dawn's appeal. Also, we have several confrontations leading up to most everyone going to bed and preparing for Sunday's elimination round.

Until then, this is Rave!


	37. On This Night, I No Longer Fear

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

At the conclusion of their dinner, the 'Swinging Foursome' became very deep in their words, especially Conway and Holly. Holly recalls how close she came to having a relationship, at age 14, with her friend. Unfortunately, she died before such a union could take place; a traumatic experience that has caused her grief throughout her teen years. Conway recalled his time with Paul during kindergarten, knowing he was gay back then. Even now, he is not sure if he ever did have feelings for him, leaving him confused. Solana goes out and does a great appeal with her Plusle and causes her Ranger comrades to wildly cheer backstage as Dawn slowly gains respect for the movement.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 37- On This Night, I No Longer Fear)

* * *

This is not something that he is used to doing. More often than not, he'd just take a stroll down to the nearest clinic and they would always have this item at no cost to the people that needed it. There would be a container of these just off to the side of different pamphlets that give people information on sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV. Indeed, the eighteen-year old never saw the need to buy any condoms while on the road if he could get the same item, just as good and effective, for free to the public. He is not the most sexually charged individual in the world, but understands that even in a legitimate swing club and session such as this with professionals the likes of both Kenny and Zoey, it is better to be safe than sorry.

But never before has Conway gotten the exposure to so many different shapes, sizes, colors and brands such as he's seeing inside of this drugstore. It's leaving him most bewildered, causing a mild headache as he just thinks about the various possibilities. Then he comes face to face with the brand that seems to define the product.

"Trojans," he remarks as a very large portion of the shelves are loaded with the type. Looking at the list one more time, he sees that the list calls for him to get a box of colorful condoms for the encounter, and a number next to the centuries-old contraceptive is a clue for the older male that he'll need to get at least six for the evening. Why so many given that there are only two boys taking part is something that he'll have to ask later.

"This is kind of weird shopping for all of this, especially with people nearby," he whispers as Holly comes from behind and places a few tubes inside the basket Conway is currently carrying in his left hand.

"There's enough lubrication in there to get a Datsun through a rabbit hole," she remarks as her boyfriend slowly drops a box of protection into the basket. "I got warming liquid, KY jelly, petroleum jelly and…"

"Whoa, wait a minute. You got petroleum jelly…and I got latex condoms?"

"Yes—oh wait! That doesn't work, or at least it's a poor combination to have. I remember you telling me that happened to one of your friends. The condom broke and…"

"They got a nice little, bouncing, bundle of joy nine months later," Conway adds, concluding the story. "If you're gonna use anything for lubrication that won't effect the condom and cause breakage, try Astroglide. I'm surprised that they don't have that on the list."

"Okay, but I know that they have petroleum jelly on the list and don't forget their words, Conway." Now speaking in a voice similar to her more butch partner, Holly says to him, "You can get whatever you want to get for yourselves, but you better make sure that you get what's on our list or you won't enjoy our time nearly as much…and neither will I."

"Okay then. They'll get their stuff and we'll get ours and call it Even Steven." Leaning in, making sure that no one else in the store hears what he has to say, Conway asks Holly, "You had the pill today, am I right?"

"I swear by it, Connie," she whispers back to him. "You know that."

As Holly walks over to another aisle, which includes the bagged snacks, including chips and drinks off to the side in coolers, Conway shakes his head a time or two and contends, "So it's a crime to know this stuff? I just want to know for sure."

Turning around before she can make her trek to the other side of the store and the snacks within. "Well, know for sure that I'm not ready and I've taken every single precaution to make sure that nothing comes of this other than us having sex. No babies, no illnesses, no nothing. I've heard too many sob stories about boyfriends fathering children with other women they swung with or getting an STD from a couple that they thought they could trust. That won't be us, though. You can count on it."

Now nodding his head, Conway joins the much taller specimen in a walk through the snack aisle for anything that might curb his midnight cravings during what all four parties expect to be a draining night of love in the physical.

While the pair is in this less controversial aisle, Holly adds to the basket a bag of chips and a container of sour cream dip with chives and guacamole. Despite this being arguably a more popular item of choice, the couple remains alone inside of the store. This gives the male an opportunity to ask is girlfriend about a very sensitive subject.

"Hey, um…I don't really know how to say this, Holly," Conway says, still keeping his voice just above a whisper in case someone might overhear what he has on his mind. "I just want to commend you for letting Zoey and Kenny know about what happened with…"

"It's no problem," she smiles while the tandem walks in the direction of the registers. "I still have very strong feelings for her after all these years…but she's gone now, and that's not something I can control. You know from the story…I saw her die, Conway. That will never leave me as long as I live. No matter how much therapy I go through, no matter the love that I get from people like you. Seeing someone you really love die at the age of fourteen before you even get the chance to tell her…I don't wish that on my worst enemy. But I want people to know the story and understand that love can happen in many different ways. Not all of them have to be 'boy meets girl'."

"So true," he remarks as they come to the front of the register line and place their items in front of the male cashier. "Are you sure that you're ready for this? I doubt that once we get up to their hotel room that we'll be able to exercise the 'chicken out' clause."

"I'm sure, man. Goddamn! How many times are you gonna ask that? I'm saddened by her loss, for sure, but nowhere near the point that I get cold feet about other relationships I'm in. Hell, I'm with you! Shouldn't that count for something?"

"Well, yeah. You are with me," Conway affirms. "But compared to your friend, I'm a safe pick. Heck, I'm an unassuming, stereotypical geek type who looks like the only thing he could hurt is an online player's feelings on XBOX Live."

While their items get rung up by the cashier, Holly can't help but giggle at the comment from the teen one year her junior. "You know, with all of these questions you keep asking me about whether or not I'm ready, I'm beginning to wonder the same about you."

"What, me?" he questions, sort of surprised by such thoughts. "Shoot, I'm ready for this! Are you kidding me? I don't know where you get an idea that I'm not prepared."

"Just a thought," she defends while giving the attendant a note to pay for the goods and getting change in return.

With their items in a bag, they walk out of the pharmacy and see the high-rise hotel off in the distance just a few blocks away from the store; well within walking distance. For some unmentionable reason, as Conway comes face to face with the somewhat humid March air during the evening in Slateport City, he begins to breathe harder and walk more rigidly as if the atmosphere had a greater effect on him than it did his counterpart, who appears to walk at a regular pace along the city sidewalks with a smile on her face. Hiding whatever feelings they might, it is not clear what is really going through her head based on her actions in the calm before the storm.

Conway does not have this same sort of fortune as his legs and his forehead, laced with perspiration, fail him and expose him for the nervous wreck that he truly is. Holly says nothing about this, despite having the best look at the young man in specs. Whether it is to keep his bravado and machismo about him or whatever, nothing much occurs between the two in the way of talk. 'What in the _world_ have I gotten myself into?' he wonders as he knows that soon there will truly be no turning back from this night _on_ this night.

* * *

Having watched more than his fair share of appeals for the evening, a man of some age and much treachery has grown tired of the practice. Norman, while in bed with his wife, turns in her direction; his eyes somewhat droopy given the mundane activity he's seen on the screen in recent minutes.

"Carly," he begins by using the pet name for the woman by his side, "would you mind if I turned this off for the night? I mean, the announcers just said that May is in and will go on tomorrow in the elimination rounds. I don't have another horse in the race…"

"Yeah, go ahead. I had stopped watching that almost an hour ago, to tell you the truth," she politely answers as she yawns a bit before Norman actually picks up the television remote to hit the topmost button and turn the receiver off for the evening, leaving only the lamps placed atop two side-table drawers as the only source of illumination in the room, minus a partially covered moon in the sky, which it itself is somewhat blocked off by the hotel blinds.

"You know, it's interesting," she mentions half a minute after the television gets its rest for the evening, "You came back to our hotel room after May made her announcement and said that you wanted to…catch the final appeals before going to bed; that you wanted to see if there was any other competition out there that could go up against May on Sunday. You got very close to watching those final appeals before even you had to admit that you needed to call it a night or risk a premature death by way of boredom.

"I had no problem with that; coordinating can be fun when done right, but most of the appeals this evening have been nothing but a rehash of things we saw when we talked about…running off to get married and start our life together. When we were kids, Norman, just like our child today. I know that we agreed in their hotel room that May will become an adult soon and that the decision will ultimately be in her hands. That's why we made the choice that we made; for her and not ourselves." Now leaning closer into her spouse, Caroline continues her form of soul-bearing by adding, "But I wanted to know what you really thought about our teenage daughter telling us that she was going to get married to Kelly, a girl we knew was a good friend of hers, but grew to learn was so much more. I never got that in the talk we had. I felt that Kelly and May got more excuses or reasons why getting engaged now is not a good idea more than anything else.

"Norman, it took me some time to get it, but they're absolutely right," she admits, now tearing up a little bit. "They can make it work and have handled their love fantastically. And it hasn't been one big thing as much as it has just been these small things that cause my heart to skip a beat when I see them. I remember just…two weeks ago when Kelly trained May in between her time at the Rustboro Academy and I saw them right before the sun was about to set…and they just gave each other this look after they talked about their battle plans. A few seconds later, they're both relaxing on one of the couches. Just…it was good to see that little thing happen, especially in young love and especially in today's world with so much…against them. They get it, Norman, I almost felt like I should be asking _them_ at times about how to keep a relationship going even if I've done it for almost twenty-five years.

"Anyway, that's how I felt about it. I just wasn't sure about what you felt."

Apparently, given that there is enough light in the room and that one can effectively read the face of another person that Caroline has known for well for multiple decades, it would appear that she has gotten him on something deep down within that he doesn't want to let out to the surface. Given how well he has been read, though, it looks as if the father of two has no other choice but to be honest like Abe and let her wife know how he really feels about her daughter planning to get married at such a young age. Shaking his head slightly from left to right and vice versa, his real opinion is heard in the words, "I am not completely behind it, to be honest."

"Norman!" she exclaims.

"Don't get me wrong, Caroline! I love Kelly and think that she is great for May. I just wish that all of this got handled differently than it did. I felt a lot of…deceit going on in this entire process. May went to my mom and dad long before she even told me that she had a girlfriend who is a university professor! That didn't matter to me, or even the fact that I now have not one but two gay children. No, my biggest problem with it all was the fact that…I learned about this for a fact and from her lips one month ago, even though I knew of it for a year because of what you told me.

"But everyone around me, Caroline, knew and apparently gave their approval and their blessing before me! She came to my parents—her grandparents before she came to me and said this. I embraced her while she continues on the road she's traveling on in this journey, Caroline," he proudly states while clenching one of his hands into a balled fist. "She is my pride, along with Max. And I felt hurt that she apparently didn't let me in and see the…beautiful thing that I see today and am coming around to more and more." Now with both fists clutched and at his sides while he is in bed, Norman suddenly gets out so he can get to his phone, which is located in his pants that he wore on this day.

"What are you doing?"

Not answering his wife, he opens the cellular phone and begins to press a couple of numbers leading to the list of speed dials. After pressing two more buttons on the phone, he waits for a dial tone, which arrives at the same time he lets the woman in the bed know, "I'm looking for some answers to my questions. May proposed to Kelly using the ring that my dad bought to propose to my mother. If they were gonna do that and actually give May the ring, then that means they _had _to know about this long before I did and had to have like what they saw. I just wonder why they didn't come to me and say a word about what was going on then."

"Norman, don't you think you might be blowing this a little out of proportion and making a mountain out of a molehill, as well?"

"I just want some answers," he contends. "I'm not gonna snap at anyone or yell. I just need to know what's up."

Just as he says this, a voice on the other end naturally asks, "Hello?"

Immediately recognizing the voice, Norman says, "Hi, mom. It's me, Norman."

"Well hello, son," Katherine Maple replies in the same tone as her son before her. "Is everything going well over there in Slateport?"

"Oh yeah. Caroline and I were about to turn in for the night and I wanted to just say goodnight…"

"Oh, certainly not for me, you aren't," she smiles and laughs while on the other line and sitting inside a café in Cape Town, South Africa. "It's right around 3:30 in the afternoon here and your father and I decided to sample the local fare and then cruise the city until it gets dark."

"Well, that explains it. The time is 10:30 at night back here in Hoenn." Having got the small talk out of the way, Norman now seeks to get to the important items of note. "Uhh…there is a reason I wanted to call you. Is dad nearby?"

"Yes," Katherine answers while looking in Maurice's general direction.

"Could I—if it's possible, could I speak to the two of you on speakerphone and talk to you about something that happened earlier this evening?"

"What about?"

"Uh…I don't know if you know this or not, but May came to me and said that she proposed to her girlfriend Kelly this evening…and that you and dad provided her the ring."

"Oh," is the only thing that comes out of Katherine's mouth before she leans over to Norman's dad and whispers something in his ear, which causes his eyebrows to rise suddenly. While all this happens, the Maple matriarch presses the button on her cellular and switches to a speakerphone option.

"Hello? Mom?" Norman asks, hoping for an answer from either his mom or dad on the situation that took place earlier in the evening.

"Son, it's me," Maurice interjects, no longer keeping Norman in the dark about the call he just made.

"Dad, hi," he responds to the sound of the voice. "I'm guessing that mom told you over that time that I was waiting for an answer, right?"

"Yeah, and you had every right to know what was going on…"

"Then why not say anything to me, dad?"

"Because your daughter told me not to, son!" he replies matter-of-factly. With confidence in his words and a desire to set things straight in his mind, Maurice makes it clear, "I respect the wishes of May. No, she is not an adult and yes, you hold a good deal of her major responsibilities, but I do think that she is capable of making this very adult decision. She came to me in confidence a while back when she and Kelly _just_ got together during the 2008 holidays and told me that she had a great feeling deep inside her that the girl was the one for her. We talked a lot about heart and what the heart says and she expressed these feelings."

"You supported her?"

"Like she was my own, Norman. That's why I didn't say anything because if any news about her and her love life was gonna come out, no pun intended, she wanted to control it and she couldn't do that if I was trusted to be the gatekeeper for a lot of these feelings for a little over a year, yet behind her back, I give you the play-by-play. That doesn't work and doesn't build any sort of trust, son, and that's why you heard her say that she loved Kelly a month ago and heard about the proposal tonight. Yes, she has a confident, brave and upstanding younger brother who did the same, but each man, woman and child who decides to come out has to go at their own pace. Obviously, for some reason, May did not want to let you or her mother know about this and kept it together for as long as she did. But do you have any idea why this was the case and why she kept this secret for this length of time? Can you even make an educated guess on the matter, son?"

"I don't," Norman begins far too early. Taking his time, he regroups his words and answers the last thing his dad referred to; why May would keep such news from her folks for so long. "I don't have an answer for that, dad. Here I am…thinking that as father, I could get all the answers by allowing the line of communication between me and my kids to be open for things like this to be discussed and for us to better understand one another."

"There's still time for that," Maurice assures his son, "and I'm sure you wish that things would not be going this quickly for you."

"Of course, dad! I mean, it seems so out of the blue; May is doing this almost like she has no choice in the matter. Like this is a shotgun wedding proposal, you know? It's all occurred so quickly, I, as an old and wise guy in her eyes, am not able to keep up with her pace."

"Sometimes, a thing like love can overcome time." After a statement that had cryptic undertones within it, the older gentleman in South Africa smirks a bit before saying, to his scion, "But you know exactly what I'm talking about, right Norman? Like father, like daughter. Nothing could be closer to the truth."

He had to know that his dad would bring it up. Much like his daughter has found love at a very young age, he did the same in the one Norman calls 'Carly'. He can hear his heartbeat louder and louder as his father on the other end of the line makes it be known once more of the situation he charged into while in his early twenties.

And then, for a fleeting second, he thinks how interesting a subject like history can be when one's mind is put into it and unable to get out. It is true; the subject has repeated and the cycle continues onward for now with no end in sight, until another generation comes along to take their place.

"Are we making sense now, Norman?" his mother questions after silence sounds like his special of the moment. "There is no denying who your children are, son, because they take after their father. That's not a bad thing, and after learning more about your wife and seeing you actually grow up, I figured that out. I'm sure you called wanting to know why in the world your daughter would go behind your back and come to us in the way she did, but the fact is that you knew the answer all along. Hell, son, you lived through your answer!"

"I'm not mad at you anymore for going behind my back and marrying Caroline," Maurice adds. "I stopped that feeling a long time ago. There's nothing for me to feel bad about; my son defied me, but I knew that that day would come. It's unavoidable just like trying to stop May from doing what she's gonna do. You can't keep her as your little girl forever, Norman; no matter how much you want that fairy tale to come true. As painful and as hurtful an experience it is, she'll defy you—no. I think based on your tone, she's already defied you. Right?"

"Well, I wouldn't go so far as to say 'defied' as much as she just took matters into her own hands…"

"All right. I sort of buy that, but no matter how you might try to dress the situation, the idea is the same. She's gone against your word and it sucks. It feels like she's spitting right in your face, but truth be told, it will be the best thing for her in the end because she gets to do it on her terms. Your only daughter is gonna get married soon. While it's a happy time for you two…I can't help but feel that this is a very sad day as well, Norman. I know from experience. You have doubts about her decision and aren't sure if she's making the right one. You don't know if things will go the way you would want them to for May. You know what that's called, Norman?"

"What is it called, sir?"

"Being a damn good father," he answers. "It's okay to be scared, to think and walk in that company of skeptics and cynics. I was part of it…"

"And so was I," Katherine admits.

"But we knew that if we did our job as parents, our children would find their way. Your kid has to grow up, eventually, and the fact is…that's the best part of being a parent overall; watching them from the time you held them in your hands through all the growth spurts, firsts of everything up to now…where you'll be giving her away very soon. But that's okay. She is giving herself away to a quality girl if I ever saw one in Kelly Marin. What more could you ask for in a young woman with such passion and determination in her work as her? And Norman, she has goals that she's gonna set very soon! She will be a doctor in just six more months! What father would not want that for his only girl? If you love something or someone enough, you _will_ let them go. You get that, right?"

He's shaking, much like that night about a month ago when he saw it with his own two eyes. 'It' was love, he knew that on Valentine's Night that his daughter found it and it was real. Nothing showy or ultimately defining convinced him of this truth, but a simple moment between two people in love sealed the deal and turned on the light in his head. Through talking the situation over with his loving wife and the two teens, he got an even greater understanding of his daughter and himself; the concern reigned as king in his mind, though he went through this same process with his only son and came out the better for it.

Now, in a different conversation, he gets word from a most reliable source that he has absolutely nothing to worry about, provided that he did the right things for those who depended on him. Nevertheless, he will continue to show concern like a good father should; just like his father did for him.

The tears have long since been there, just waiting to flow from the ducts of the conflicted parent. Caroline has asked the man time and time again what his mother and father are telling him, yet he just keeps shaking his head and looking up to the ceiling above. With his voice choppy like ocean waves against New England shore, he says to his parents, scared like a lost boy, "I get it, dad. That doesn't mean I have to like it, though."

"No one said you would, Norman," Katherine contends. "This is tough, I know, and a great part of me wants to just wrap you in your arms and tell you that everything will be fine…but that's what you have Caroline for now, I suppose." She ends her small response sounding a little downtrodden, but keeps it together for her son and in front of the public restaurant where she and Maurice are enjoying their meal.

"So are you okay?" Norman's dad asks him, but the only call back he gets includes what sounds like loud crying or bawling on the other end of the line.

Afterwards, about ten or fifteen seconds later, Maurice and Katherine hear the sound of their son screaming the words "I love you, May," and "I'm behind you one hundred percent," and "I'm sorry I ever doubted you." Though his folks can't see it, he's quite emotional, with his head down on the carpet and the tears continuing to arrive at the pace of a bullet train.

Picking up his cell phone while embracing the man in her arms, Caroline speaks into the receiver, "Hey, this is Caroline. Uh…what did you just say to Norman? He's here on the floor just…it's like he's lost it. He's…wailing here on the hotel floor and saying how much he supports May."

"No, Caroline," Maurice smiles from the other end. "If I'm not mistaken, I really think you're seeing him at his absolute best. He's just letting go. It's hard for him, as it will be for you, but he has to do this to find…his real reward as a parent. I'm sure he'll speak to me later. For now, my wife and I should be going. This is your time with him. Ask him…what he thinks about his daughter's plans now and you just might get a different answer."

"Take care, Caroline."

"Okay, Katherine and Maurice. Good day to you," she speaks while holding and rocking her husband much like that aforementioned February 14th evening. Hanging up the cell phone, she leads her spouse back to the bed, her mission to find out exactly what occurred over the phone.

Pleading with her husband to take some deep breaths and regain his composure, the question gets posed to Norman about what caused him to cry as much as he has in the last few minutes. To this, he makes the case that, "We've lost her, Carly. Don't you know how sad that is that our daughter is no longer gonna be 'our little girl'? I mean, she'll always be ours, but…before we even know it; she will be someone else's. That and me not understanding that May has to go at her own pace made me apprehensive to her proposal…but not anymore, Caroline. I just…I love her," he admits, his voice breaking yet again. "I have to do right by May, and this is something I wasn't quite ready to accept, until now. That's why I'm…bawling my eyes out because things will never be the same. This night changes everything. I can accept it, or miss out." Finally, as it almost seems like it's been forever since Caroline has seen it, a smile actually appears on the face of her significant other. "What do you think I'm gonna do?"

Returning the gesture, she knows the answer and gives Norman his bone. "Be the best dad you can be," with this answer sealed with a kiss and embrace from the fairer party, the deal is done; set in stone, one might say.

The fear has not departed and may never for what lies ahead for their daughter and even their son, but from this evening forward, the pair refuses to put their faith in such concern.

Their children aren't doing it and it has gotten both of them, especially May, to this important point in her life.

* * *

"All right, ladies and gentlemen!" says a microphone-wielder coming up onto the stage with the overhead lights of the stadium illuminating him and all that is around him to the point that one might think it is the daytime upon first glance. Walking up to the Pokémon Ranger, Robert reminds the crowd "That was Solana Roubanis; the second to last coordinator to make her mark in appeals. I must say, you are a face that I have not seen much around contest houses and the like."

"Well, I'm not a coordinator by trade, Robert," she answers, a bit shakily due to some microphone and stage fright. "My fellow Rangers and I are here in a…collective effort to take the Ribbon Cup and represent the order. This is actually my first appeal."

A few 'oohs' and 'boos' are heard from the massive crowd, depending on where people stand on the idea of people walking on in coordinating competitions. Robert seems to take the entire moment in stride by making the comment to the judges, "Did you hear that? It's her very first appeal…ever! Do me a favor; don't go easy on her…at all." This elicits a lot of laughter from both sides. So much of it that many of them don't hear the former Grand Festival Champion say, "Contesta, your thoughts?"

"Well, that's quite an effort for a first appeal. You seem to have a great handle on…attack combinations and you do it quite well with a Pokémon not really known for doing great in attacks. Very good job and you and the Rangers should be proud of what happens."

"Shockingly…remarkable!" Suziko then adds.

Then, Slateport's Nurse Joy continues down the line, explaining, "I really think you did all that you could with Plusle there. The fact that you don't have many technical machines to use for that Pokémon makes this even more impressive. The more difficult the routine, even if it's not done perfectly will always get a high mark in my mind."

Solana just smiles and nods in the face of the criticism, though she feels better as she goes down the line, getting nothing but compliments from the judges, like the Joy of Littleroot Town, who liked the electric show and how Plusle looked like a pinball going through the motions.

Finally, the thoughts of Ever Grande's Joy surface. "I think you might have a future in coordinating…if you're serious about it and want to pursue it. Like my other colleagues have said, you had great command of your stuff out there. You didn't panic when the clock came down and time started to run out and you kept it cool. By doing that, your Plusle kept it cool, too, and for a first effort, it should be commended and will be once you look at the score."

"Okay, so far so good as far as comments and thoughts on your appeal from the people that mean the most." Robert now turns back in the direction of the Ranger, dressed in her uniform for the Grand Festival in order to get her thoughts. "So you aren't a coordinator. Why are you here exactly? Could it be the fact that this competition gives three and a half million dollars in cash and prizes to the victor?"

Leaning in to make the point clear, Solana answers, "You bet. That's exactly why I'm here with my teammates. I'm not the greatest expert on appeals, so…please don't ask me where that came from. It really doesn't matter to me so long as I impress and increase my wealth through it."

Slowly bringing his microphone back near him, Robert now must contend with some of the jeers that Solana is now receiving from this very pro-coordinating crowd. "Okay," he begins. "That is her opinion, but truth be told, it doesn't matter one bit." That statement causes the stadium to erupt into cheers, but like a professional, the coordinator ignores them and moves on with his build-up, adding, "those five judges over there are the ones who hold your fate. They are charged to be objective in their work, and I'm sure they've never been tested quite like this from a real outsider attempting to join the top sixteen with what many argue was a nice appeal. But is it enough? You need at least a forty-four to advance to tomorrow's round, so…up in the booth? What's the score?"

Only scant seconds pass before the big revelation arrives. Solana did more than what she had to in order to make it to the next round by getting a score of forty-five, putting her in eleventh place amongst all contestants and guaranteeing herself a spot in tomorrow's elimination rounds. Among the individual scores came nines across the board from all five judges, realizing that despite her feelings about the sport that they love and judge on a regular basis, she did a job worthy of high praise and an equally high score.

"A forty-five and every judge seems like they are giving you an 'A' for effort in this one as Solana is on cloud nine, I'm sure?"

"Oh yeah, Rob, but if you think I feel good about this, then my team must be ecstatic right now."

"Well, now is the time you can head to the back, celebrate with them and prepare for tomorrow." Shaking the hand of the young ranger, he says, "Good job to you and good luck! That was Solana Roubanis, folks!"

While quickly dashing to the back, she gets her fair share of booing from the crowd, but she could care less about the crowd and their feelings as she has made good on her promise to deliver a high return on the thousand-dollar investments of Kellyn, Jack, Spencer and Lunick. She came to Slateport with a goal, and she has accomplished that goal, even if it would be nice to get that grand prize.

Heading back behind the curtain, her teammates engulf her into a massive group embrace. None of this surprises Solana in the least bit as the boys show their appreciation for her work and for the fact that none of them wasted their thousand dollars on a real gamble.

All the praise goes on for about a minute until a girl off to the side says the name, "Solana!" very loudly, getting the attention of this fantasy five. The voice belong to Dawn, who might as well have the nickname 'stone face' as that is exactly how she looks right now as she walks toward the lone female Ranger. The comrades pay close attention to this exchange as the two ladies now stand face to face with one another.

The tension is most clichéd, but after a while the matter cools down and the right hand of the second-generation coordinator gets extended to meet the self-proclaimed amateur. "Good job," the more experienced of the two admits, though a smile does not crack the façade. "I would have never known."

"Thank you," Solana answers, bringing out her own hand and shaking Dawn's. While their disagreements as far as competition, battling and the science of appeals will continue, the two can put that aside and recognize good coordinating on the part of the older one.

"All right, that's fine with me," Kellyn remarks, "but I think it's time we celebrate our comrade's incredible score!" With his right arm high in the air, he declares "Drinks on me! How about it?" The other four Rangers agree with it and leave the backstage area to head over to a local bar or tavern and properly dedicate this good night for them all.

Dawn, who is the last coordinator left before the elimination rounds, gets her mind back where it's supposed to be for her appeal. 'Stay focused, Dawn. Stay focused, girl.'

"Berlitz," gets her out of her current mode and turns her attention back to the director on the headset. "You're on in five minutes. We're currently in commercial break. We're gonna then run a tease package for your appeal and then, I'll count down to your introduction. You understand?"

"Yes, sir, and thank you."

"Are you feeling all right, Dawn?" Usually, the director for Hoenn region Grand Festivals, an older man in his early 50s who's been doing his job without fail for over twenty years, does not often talk to coordinators unless they are being given instructions for television like right now. This is clearly a great exception to the unwritten rule of professionalism in this region's coordinating broadcasts.

"Oh, I'm fine. Thanks Rick," she says, giving the common answer to such an inquiry. "I'm here, aren't I?" After posing that question to the director, he just shrugs his shoulders and wishes that Dawn has a great appeal while speaking back to his team in the production trucks, barking out instructions in a way that would put auctioneers to shame.

* * *

A/N: Dawn's appeal, a huge confrontation, another big blowup and the long kiss goodnight wrap up Saturday in the next chapter.

Until then, it's Rave or Bust!


	38. The Beginning of ‘Escapades’

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Conway and Holly take the final steps in preparation for their sexual encounter with Zoey and Kenny. They do this by purchasing lubrication, condoms and other items designed to make the process go smoothly. Conway is nervous and attempts to hide it by asking if Holly is nervous, but she does not bite. Norman admits that he is not entirely behind his daughter's plans to get married and calls his father and mother for some answers on why they kept May's plans a secret. Norman's father, Maurice, says that he hid it because May asked him to, and Norman should expect this to happen because he did it to him when getting together with Caroline. Tearfully, he apologizes to May (not in person), understanding what happened much better. Solana scores a forty-five in her appeal and celebrates with her teammates while earning the respect of Dawn, who's about to go out next and do her appeal.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 38- The Beginning of 'Escapades')

* * *

Several stops have to be made for Conway and Holly to make their way to the eighth floor of the Slateport Milton hotel where Kenny and Zoey are waiting for them to get the party started. Most of the lubricants, contraceptives and other items for play are out of sight, so nobody questions why they look so nervous as if they were not going up, but rather taking the elevator down…way down.

The ding reverberates through the cramped space that is the elevator and soon afterwards, the couple is one step closer to their ultimate destination; room 835. While there, they run into another group of people that have come out of an elevator from across the floor. They are individuals that the Sinnoh trainers know quite well.

"Harley, Max…" says Holly.

"Brock, Lucy…" says Conway.

"What are you guys doing here?" they say in unison.

"We need to talk to Kenny," Harley answers for the group while one of his hands is cramped up like it's in a fist.

Not noticing the fact that the tall male has his hands positioned like a fist, Holly says, "Oh, that's interesting. Kenny really didn't talk about expecting any company tonight. We were just gonna meet him and Zoey for the night."

"What?"

"It—it's a long story, really," her boyfriend speaks as a way of changing the subject which would without a doubt lead to some awkward conversation. "We just have to see them like you did. Uh—wait. Did you have any prior plans for tonight with Kenny or did something just come up between the four of you that you have to work out right now?"

"The latter, Conway. I have to make my way over to his hotel room and ask him a few questions and then, I'm turning in for the night." Throughout this speech, Harley's stone face does not change at all and after these words, Holly notices this and feels that there are no good intentions in his plans at all.

"Uh, let us come with you, Harley," she asks of the older coordinator in light of this intuition within her. Holly continues, "Maybe we can help you with something if you need it. That's as far as Kenny is concerned, mind you."

Slightly rolling his eyes in a deft manner, Harley shows his peers the frustration within him as he cannot get to his enemy when he wants to. "Whatever floats your boat, Holly, you and Conway can come along. It doesn't matter to me that much. Now, Max, where did you say that his room is?"

"835, sweetheart," he tells the older male. "That's where he is."

"Now _that's_ what I care about. Let's go."

"Harley, just…" Brock blurts out to restore some amount of order to a very ticked off lover's desires to get even. While the group of six walk in the direction of room 835, as per the instructions given to the leader, the Pokémon breeder finds the words he was likely looking for when he addressed Harley. "Don't do any stupid stuff, okay? There might be more to this than you or I know about. There just might be a reason for all of this that we aren't getting or haven't gotten. Hell, it might be a damn mistake! We don't know—_you _don't know this because you haven't spoken to Kenny since this kiss!"

"If that's the case, _Brockton_," Harley charges, "then he won't mind explaining himself and his actions to all of us. And if that son of a bitch wants to play hard to get, then I'll beat it out of him. Either way, I will damn sure get mine."

Sighing as he knows that they are getting closer and closer to the room, Max has to admit that he does not have nearly the kind of enthusiasm for 'getting even' that his boyfriend does. The one important thing to him as far as this entire fiasco is concerned is the fact that he has his love back and they are on at least good terms. Max would like nothing more than for Kenny to just explain himself and be done with the entire incident so that all sides may move onto tomorrow's festivities. Unfortunately, for Harley, nothing can ever be that easily accomplished without some form of treachery attached. That's why, although he has attempted to convince the local native not to go to the extremes in this confrontation, such requests have more or less fallen on deaf ears as the coordinator's determination is only overridden by the anger felt deep within him; anger that the bespectacled teen had long loosed from his person and dropped like an ill-gotten habit.

The numbers on the plate, along with the raised dots to indicate Braille, near the key card mechanism are clear as the fluorescent lighting above the group of six. They have all made their way down this hallway and to the room Max told them to go to just a minute earlier in 835.

Not wishing to wait for any pleasantries, Harley knocks on the door, yet the sound makes it seem as if he's pounding it to the people on the inside.

"Damn, I didn't think that Conway would be _that _enthusiastic to do this! I like it! That can make this better than an energy shot buzz!" Kenny speaks while hearing the pounding knock on the door. At the moment, he is clearing the hotel room and making sure that things are clean and the atmosphere is an inviting one, so as not to turn off the virgin couple they are about to enjoy.

"I don't think that's Conway, to be honest," Zoey determines. "Though I'm sure he's been trying to hide it, he's been so fucking nervous about this all day that I doubt that anything would press him to pound at the door and demand to see your dick like we're hearing. Anything like what we're taking part in right now would be done discretely."

"Well, I won't spend my time speculating about it. I'm gonna check and see so we can begin." With that, Kenny looks through the peephole of his room. It is there that he feels his heart, stomach and all the other organs in his body start to sink as low as they can go. His head appears to go in the same direction as his person, knowing that Harley will not let this die without venting his frustrations in the face of the Catholic mass of humanity.

Not speaking a word to his girlfriend who's watching television, Kenny simply opens the door, prepared for whatever might happen to him. "Hey, Harley. Look…" One thing that he did not expect to see, because Harley crowded the hole so well, was the fact that his invited guests were here, along with Lucy and Brock. He couldn't worry about them right now, though; because the moment that the amorous coordinator opened the door for him, he got shoved into the wall of the hotel by his neck and Harley still has a hold on it.

While Max and the others seek to stop Harley from choking Kenny out, he will have none of it until the choked gets his comeuppance. "You fucking bastard! Explain yourself! What the fuck were you thinking kissing my boyfriend in the bathroom like that, huh?"

"Well, if you let me answer," Kenny replies while straining to get the words out of his mouth, "You'll understand I made a mistake with Max!"

"You're damn right you did!" Harley loudly retorts.

"What the hell?" Zoey exclaims, coming out of her room. "Harley, get off Kenny…now! Let him go, Harley! What's going on here?"

Letting go of the neck of the teen, Harley explains, "Your little boy toy and I need to have a little talk about what's proper behavior and what isn't. We're gonna do it alone, though."

"Harley."

"Holly, Conway…just go inside for now, okay?" Kenny directs. "You too, Zoey. I have to handle this thing with Harley the way he wants or he won't get it, so just go inside, get comfortable and we'll do our thing in a minute."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, Conway. I'm sure. Go in the room. I'll be with you later. He won't do anything too bad to me with Brock and Lucy here."

"But you just your ass got choked out!"

"Go inside, Zoey! That goes for you too, Conway and Holly! I mean it, okay? I'll be fine."

Gritting her teeth, she gives the stubborn boy what he wants in his chat. "Okay, then. If I hear anything off about this conversation, I'm coming back out here and we will settle this my way. Conway, Holly, come with me. We'll get settled in." And with that, the three enter what is quite an immaculate looking room, similar to the one they are staying in up on the tenth floor, with the only discernable differences being the placement of beds and the bedding that goes above it. After a few seconds, the three make some idle conversation; mainly to get their mind off of the scene in the hotel hallway. A minute or so of back and forth conversation then passes, which seems to escalate into straight arguing.

A grunt was something they expected on this night, many of them in fact, but none of the three amorous teenagers inside of the hotel room had even removed their shoes before entering the scene of their upcoming activity. Upon his request to the other members of this swinger's sandwich, Kenny went back to the front door and told his girlfriend and the other couple to wait for him in the room so that he could take care of a somewhat charged mob and attempt to talk some sense into the highly effeminate but equally angered coordinator. Soon afterwards, his partners heard the first of what will be several grunts. This one, however, has nothing to do with pleasure.

"It was a mistake, Harley!" they hear the sixteen-year-old plea, but to no avail as just one second later, they hear flesh and bone landing on flesh and skull, causing Conway to immediately jump up and find out what's happening with the younger male. Holly and Zoey follow right behind him.

In the hallway leading to the door, they are met by Kenny, who's slouched over by the right wall leading to the bathroom. Getting a good look over where he now sits and moans in a fit of sudden pain, they all can see that the Twinleaf native with an affinity for all sexes has a black eye on the right side of his face.

"Kenny, _now_ what happened?" Zoey asks.

"I hit his ass," says not Kenny, but Harley standing by the doorway. "That's what happened. That's what he gets for kissing my boyfriend. Isn't that right, _Kenneth the Fourth_? And while she's here again, why don't you let your girlfriend here know the whole truth about this sorry episode and how you apparently can't keep your hands away from man, woman or child?"

"Like I freaking told you, it was a mistake, Harley!" he restates. "Even Max admits that, but you just had to have your release and take your frustrations out on me. Why? Well, hearing through the grapevine, I do know of a lot of answers to that question, but I don't know what in the world they have to do with me when you know—you _know_ what I'm all about! Don't get pissed off at me, Harley, and don't hold in the frustrations you have for your boyfriend's folks because they think it's best that you not have sex...intercourse or go all the way with Max until he turns eighteen?"

"Hey, asswipe! That's our business, all right? How did you know that?" Harley clarifies for the one of loud mouth. Aiming to charge at his fellow coordinator on the ground, he is, instead, held back by his younger boyfriend and told several times to calm down.

"If I'm not mad at Kenny," Max explains, "then you shouldn't be, either! Settle down, please!"

"Kenny…Max—someone!" Zoey says, almost screaming, as a way of getting the attention of someone far more in the know than she is at this moment. "What the fuck is going on here? Kissing your boyfriend? Just what kind of mistake are you talking about?"

"Zoey, earlier tonight, Kenny came into a bathroom at the Slateport Stadium and thought that he saw Conway over at the bathroom sink, but that was actually me that he saw and that led to him kissing me and not Conway, like he apparently wanted."

"Wait, you said that he confused me with you, Max?" Conway interjects.

"That's right."

"Okay, that makes sense, I suppose. He and I are wearing the same shirt, after all, and I did make that point to you earlier, Max."

"You know what? That's fine," Zoey interjects, looking quite angry. "I'm not gonna deny that that is an honest mistake and that everyone here understands that and could make those same rash conclusions and go too far, right?" Waiting for a response, she asks once again, "Am I right, Harley?"

"Yes," Harley responds simply.

"Well then, what the hell are you thinking hitting Kenny? Are you gonna prove a point by using your fists that you can't do with your words? Everyone agrees that Kenny made a mistake. He's a horny slut, Harley. This is something that he freely admits to those in his inner circle, including his family! So anyone—_anyone _that he comes across that he likes is not safe. It's that simple. Either live with it or you lose one of the best guys that anyone could have as a friend. So what the fuck are you doing getting pissed off over one, moronic, stupid, idiotic, childish mistake from a sixteen-year-old boy? You're what? Twenty-five years old? The exact age doesn't really matter. Whatever it is, you know better than that! Problems like that haven't been solved before, so what makes you think that today will yield any different results? My God in heaven, he's just a boy and he will be that until...whenever he grows up and whatever that might entail! I'm sorry for exploding like this, but...you know I'm right. That's not how you handle your shit! You talk it out like the grown fucking man you claim to be!"

During this mini rant coming from the redheaded firecracker, Harley brings his head down and realizes that he probably shouldn't have pissed Zoey off by hurting Kenny. After all, this girl, though much younger than he is, can deliver quite a punch herself.

"I asked you a question, Harley," Zoey tells him once again as Kenny gets back up from off the ground. "What makes you think that you can run roughhouse on my boyfriend when you know what he's all about?"

"Yeah, what was that all about, really?" asks Brock, who has gone from a silent observer to a skeptic after hearing what Zoey has said in the last minute. "And Zoey, not to sound out of order or anything like that, but the fact is that you sound angrier about the fact that Harley hit Kenny and not that Kenny kissed another guy. You _are _his girlfriend and yet you seem so cavalier about that."

"I—you know what? Yes, I'm not angry about the fact that Kenny kissed another boy at all, because I knew about that. And as for why I had no problem with it, the simple and quick answer is that we share each other."

"Share each other?"

"Yes. Zoey and Kenny are swingers, Brock," Conway answers. "Bisexual swingers, and that's the reason why there was this confusion and why Zoey is angry at Harley and not Kenny."

"Wait, and…that's what you're doing here in their hotel room tonight; a swing session?" Lucy asks.

"Yes, that's the reason why Holly and I are here."

"Wow," Lucy answers. "I've never thought of anything like that before. The idea of swinging to add some spice or juice to our relationship never came up. It's a new idea in my mind, but it sounds kind of intriguing if I say so myself."

"Hey now," Brock contends, given the scope of what he knows about himself and the possibilities of a bisexual session which do not nearly tickle his fancy into submission as much as a so-called 'traditional' wife or girlfriend swap. Not meaning to sound insulted or taken aback by the idea, he says to Lucy and the gathered crowd, "One couple at a time, okay?"

"Actually, Brock is right. I don't think that it would be right for Conway and Holly if I allowed any other couples or people in here if I'm not prepared for them physically and emotionally, so anything like that will have to take a rain check," Kenny admits. Reaching into his right pocket, he does give the older union some advice for potential future encounters. "If you think that you'd like to be a part of something like this or would want to do it with another pair, here's the card to the organization." Reaching across the hallway, he hands Lucy what appears to be a business card, which she wastes no time reading.

"_The Switch Hitter's Society_: We go both ways to make sure your pleasure is our business," she orates, directly from the card. "Interesting, Kenny, but neither Brock nor I am bisexual."

"That's no problem," he says, not missing a beat. "They know other organizations and swing clubs that cater to what you like. I'm sure they can give you something that you both can agree with and get on board with and if you can find something, let me know. My number's there on the card, as well."

"Okay, now that we have that settled, is everything okay here?" Though Zoey looks around and sees Harley nod his head while just about everyone else says yes, she is not satisfied by this affirmation from the man who attacked her boyfriend. She would like this to end sooner than later so she can get to the business at hand, but it does not appear that Harley will bend without much prodding from the other side.

"Harley, you don't have anything at all to say about this, but to nod your goddamn head?" Zoey wonders out loud. "Forgive me if I think you would have more to say. After all, you _were _the person that thought it was necessary to punch Kenny in the face and give him a black eye, when you knew the type of…drive he has and that it was a mistake, something that your hotheaded ass didn't want to accept until the evidence was right in front of your face. Call me crazy, but I think Kenny deserves more than just a nod. Apologize to him, Harley."

"Just do it, Harley, and get it over with," Max pleads with his much older boyfriend. "Let's not conflict things anymore than they have been. I forgive Kenny for kissing me. Why can't you do the same?"

Most everyone in and around the hallway agrees with this and eventually, Harley finds himself backed into a corner and extending a hand of friendship in the direction of Kenny, which he accepts. Leaning into the teen, he says, "I will go the distance for that boy, because I care for him that much and will do whatever I need to in my power to make sure he's safe. Keep that in mind along with the fact that I'm doing this for him, but for the most part...we're fine. I'm a tad bitter, but I'll get over that, as well. Just remember to keep your hands and lips to yourself and know who you're dealing with when it comes to this stuff, deal?"

"Okay, no problem or arguments here," he whispers in return. Heading back in the direction of the door, he wishes Brock, Max, Lucy and Harley, "Good night," while they hope that he and the other three involved in this session have a good time and a good night, as well.

"Hey, Harley," Brock speaks to the male as they walk over to the elevators. "I'm curious because Zoey kept mentioning that...that you knew about Kenny--that you knew what he was all about. What did she mean by that?"

"Uhh," Harley begins, not really knowing how to start, "let's just say that when you are out on the road with a motley bunch as coordinators and trainers can often be you see things that really open your eyes. Zoey really is the...one."

"The one?" Max curiously wonders.

"It would explain a lot if she were a boy in a past life, that's all I'm gonna say." Though disappointed that he is not going to get any added information about this unique relationship between the Sinnoh coordinators from his boyfriend, who according to his word has some details about the two of a certain interest, he believes that some convincing from his end might lend him some answers and provide clarity, which he may be able to find away from the other couple, who now stands with them in the elevators leading to the upper floors.

As he heads for the door, the last person of their group heads to go back inside the room. Given this, he shuts the door behind him leaving behind only a sign on the doorknob urging passers by one important message.

Do not disturb.

* * *

A/N: Due to the length, this has been shortened to this one scene, which also serves as the lead in to my first ever smut fic 'Escapades of the Swinging Four' coming soon on my profile page.

Until then, this has been Rave!


	39. Nothing to Say

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Conway and Holly Meet Harley, Max, Lucy and Brock on the eighth floor of the hotel to take care of some business, but both sides do it for different reasons. Harley knocks on Kenny's door and he opens it, knowing what awaits him on the other side. After choking him for a while, he gets stopped by his side. Claiming that he wants to speak to Kenny without many people around, he gets his wish from Kenny, no less, as he asks his fellow swingers to wait in his room for him. They do so, but not even a minute passes before Kenny gets punched in the face for kissing Max inadvertently. Kenny explains his confusing Max for Conway and after Max says that he's gotten over it and Zoey has put Harley in his place, everything has been settled for the night, including arrangements for Brock and Lucy to possibly take part in swinging themselves. Conway, Kenny, Zoey and Holly are now ready for their session.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 39- Nothing to Say)

* * *

As a cap off to a fine evening for a person who is by all accounts an amateur in a world of true professionals, Solana along with her male counterparts celebrate in a nearby bar, where most of the television screens are tuned into the final appeals of the evening. With only a few minutes until ten o'clock local time, Spencer, Kellyn, Lunick and Jackie treat the scene like an outing on New Year's Eve. It certainly didn't help that the bar owner, who has great respect for the work that the rangers perform in and around the several regions, allowed this fantastic five to have whatever they wanted from their bar in recognition of their service and their teammate's performance about half an hour ago. After giving the group of five their recognition, they were whisked off to another side of the bar where they are able to see the rest of the patrons while at the same time enjoy everything from drinks to food, and all on the bar's tab.

"You know something?" Lunick says to his group, who has now been given V.I.P. status by the bar, "Maybe this coordinating gig isn't as bad as we once thought it was. I mean, when you think about it, they get all of the primetime television slots, they get treated like they're royalty, you see them pitch a whole bunch of things to the people. They really get the life and based on what we saw earlier today, I can tell it's more than just stringing together attacks. Now Spencer, you asked about why there were so many stands at the convention center and all of those corporate kiosks that we saw just outside of the stadium. Well, those corporations see the number of people that come here and quite frankly, it would behoove them to tap into this audience! If you really look at this thing from all the many different angles, you can sort of begin to see how the contest bosses can justify giving millions of dollars to the coordinators who seem to be the ones that attract all these people who, let's face it, are spending a ton of money here this weekend, as well."

"Well, that's cool, man," Jackie responds. "Really, it is, but that doesn't really mean much to me because I have no intentions of changing careers anytime soon. In the here and now, that just means that we are in a much better position than anyone else before us to take advantage of this giant pool of cash and spoil the party so that I can get a return on _my_ investment. Now, Solana...you said that the producer told you just before we left for the bar that your position for tomorrow's elimination rounds is secure, am I right?"

"Yes. There's only one other person that did not do an appeal and that was Dawn Berlitz."

"The _chica_ that was jaw jacking with us in the gorilla position backstage?"

"Same one, Kellyn," Solana answers. "And really, looking at it for what it was, I can see why she was in our face. I mean, we are not representatives of coordinating. We are outsiders that are here for one reason and that's to get money; to make off with our share. Dawn Berlitz...her mother was a coordinator; a highly successful one at that and our remarks about the sport I'm sure had to hit home with her and make her...mad as hell with us. Really, who are we to enter into their line of work and think that we can just shake things up and take over like coordinating is nothing? You guys heard the booing from the crowd."

"Fuck the crowd, Solana! They know nothing about you and are just hardcore fans who love their coordinating and will say 'screw you' to just about everything else."

"No, no, seriously!" she retorts. "Hear me out, Spencer. We're in their world as trespassers. I thought about that when I entered the stadium floor for the first time and could hear more of it when I told them that I'm a walk on here and that I'm only doing it for a large payday for my squad. I started to look at it from Dawn's perspective and things got a lot clearer for me. Coordinating...I hesitate to say is her way of life, essentially. That's what's put food on the table and a roof over her head for so long and for someone to come around and say that it's for the birds; I can see why she might be upset as us bashing what she's wanted to do since she was probably a little girl still wrapped up tightly in her mother's arms and suckling on something else."

After a chuckle, Solana continues. "In any event, I thought about that and I also gave some thought to how much _we_, as Pokémon rangers, wouldn't like it if people suddenly signed up for our specific positions not really knowing the full extent of what that requires of people to ascend to our ranks. I mean, we all worked our tails off to get to the point we're at right now and we want respect for that. For someone else to just arrive onto the scene and get great recognition for their work right off the bat while I've been busting my ass for a while just to catch breaks only for them to fall out of my hands...I get it now; more than I did when I came up with this idea for us to make some quick and easy cash. Now, like Jackie, I'm not really interested in making a living doing this, but there is no doubt that I have respect for the coordinators who perform. You were there for the handshake."

"Yeah, I was wondering if something else would happen there, honestly."

Noticing that Lunick's attention is turned to both her words and something built into their table in the far off section of the club, the impeding question lingers in her mind before Solana has to interject herself and ask "What's that you're playing with over there, Nick?"

"I just noticed this after the waitress gave me my ale about five minutes ago," he answers. "It looks like a bunch of buttons that connect or control a television, but I don't get it. It couldn't be one of the big ones off in the main area because they haven't changed at all since I found this."

"You know, Lunick, maybe this little booklet on the dessert menu here has something to do with this," Spencer interjects as he notices that some of the colors on the laminated leaflet corresponded to the same colored buttons that Lunick and the other rangers found on the table. Picking it up, he skims one side of it before looking at the top section of the other side and coming to a conclusion. "Lunick, try pressing that red button on the top left of the panel there. This says that a series of LCD screens should come up that show several live and on-demand shows."

"No shit?" Jackie questions while checking the pamphlet for the table himself. Not seeing anything wrong with what Spencer just said, he takes advantage of his proximity to what appears to be a complex remote control and hits the power button for said equipment.

At that moment, the rangers, seated in a semi-circle, hear a great amount of electronic whirring, even over the loud dance music in the local club. Curious like a cat, Solana checks underneath her table and gets a big surprise as a series of wheel sets underneath the table along with horizontally-placed pulleys roll out a large electronic device past the round table. Viewing this item from the back, all five of them can tell that they are looking at a large television without even needing to look at the guide provided by the establishment. Within a time of about forty-five seconds, a spring-loaded lever props the television upright, brings it closer to the teammates and turns it on, revealing that it is indeed split to view four different programs at one time.

Nodding, Kellyn can't help but say that the setup is "Way cool," but after the 'awe' portion of his words concludes, he scoots closer to the remote only to find that there are a few portable ones by the side of the table for such an incident. Pulling out one of them, he points it at the television and presses one button, which leads him to a listing of programming on demand, including a section entitled 'Hoenn Grand Festival'. Going further into this section, he sees more sections, including options which allow him to watch past Grand Festival matches, interviews, tips of the trade and appeals from the current event as they happen.

"Wait a minute? They actually have today's appeals on their menu? Man, this has _got _to be state of the art. This is much better than the system that I had placed in my pad back in Chicole."

"Well, there's a reason for that, man," Lunick speaks. "You live in a rural area so things will come there much slower than they will for city boys like Jackie and I."

"Ah, good point. That does have some advantages, though. While technology is a great thing, do we ever stop and wonder what we're missing with this evolution of these devices at the speed of light?"

After Kellyn made the point that he did, his peers look at him in some sort of awe, as if their comrade blew their mind with his thoughts. The silence of this crew is only accentuated by the loud party atmosphere of the club goers around them dancing and carrying on. Any poignant thoughts and ideas, however, go by the waist side, however, as Spencer uses his portable remote to search for Solana's appeal. "Where is—ah! Here we go!" Once getting to the video file of her performance from not even an hour ago, Spencer sets the large TV screen to play the footage from earlier. "We're doing this because you are the only one that didn't see yourself on television."

"Wait a minute, I can wait on that," Solana interrupts. "I'm kind of curious as to how my temporary adversary did right after we left. I mean, we really didn't stick around to see how she did. I think we owe at least that much to her." Not hearing much agreement from her teammates, she sighs for a bit before adding, "Come on, now! What's five minutes? We're all here and she is my competition for tomorrow if she makes it through, so it would be smart for me to look at what she does, right? If nothing else, I can learn from what she did, apply it to tomorrow's performance and earn more money for our pool."

"Where's Dawn's appeal?" Jack immediately questions. Grabbing the remote from Spencer, he scrolls down the list of programs before he sees one titled 'Berlitz, Dawn: Hoenn, 2010 Appeal' which corresponds to exactly what the group, more specifically, Solana, was looking for from the list of shows and segments.

"I still can't get over the fact that they have this footage already in the archives for the people to see…and Dawn's appeal can't even be an hour old at this point!"

"Well, get over it, Nick, 'cause it's about to start," Solana tells him. As Jack presses the button to start the appeal, she shushes her teammates. "Quiet guys, I wanna hear this."

Once the teammates decide to silence themselves for the benefit of their fellow ranger, they get their fill of Vivian Meridian and her deep and detailed introduction of the final coordinator of the evening, Dawn Berlitz. One thing that Solana notices is the very loud cheering from the crowd. It seems that the accolades listed by the announcers correlate with the popularity and noise that she elicits everywhere she goes.

While walking to the ring in the stage, the announcers, Professor Birch, Melinda and Gavin, all talk about the numerous controversies that have led Dawn to this point in time. From being hospitalized early Saturday morning due to painful headaches, to getting medical clearance from the contest directors to do her appeal last of all coordinators, to the fight in the press room with Drew due to the fact he fathered a child with his ex-girlfriend while still in a relationship with her, and for other reasons, and being told that she, along with Drew, would be suspended for the next six months due to that occurrence all have made for quite the day for the popular second-generation coordinator. But she, like all professionals in their trade, knows that it is best for her to simply block out all the distractions, take care of business and work to the job that she sought out to do since she began her journey through the Hoenn region.

Making it to the center of the stage, she gets the signal from the referee to begin her appeal. She does so by throwing out her Poké Ball and calling her Mamoswine to the task of impressing the judges for the next two minutes.

"Mamoswine, eh?" Kellyn remarks. "Well, for a Pokémon that has a powerful move set and a great upside when it comes to attack variety, there isn't a much better Pokémon that she could have unless she has an Arceus we know nothing of."

"She has no Arceus, unless she is covering up a secret with our enemies behind our backs," Spencer speaks.

"Guys," Solana warns her team while Dawn commands Mamoswine to use mist, followed right after that by hail. Those maneuvers continue to blanket the arena in a cloud of sorts and right afterwards a call of rain dance is made.

As the commentators continue to explain and elaborate to the audience about what they are watching, analyst Professor Birch makes note of the fact that all of Dawn's attacks at the moment are ones that are designed to last over a period of five turns. It's a great strategy, he claims, to use for coordinators who wish to build upon their attacks and make impressions with well placed elements. Melinda adds that this strategy has been seen before with coordinators like Savannah and May who both performed earlier in the day.

Dawn, with confidence in her face that can barely be seen through the mist and the fog in the arena, continues to time and synchronize her attacks, which is something that Solana has clued into by watching her mannerisms and actions while her appeal is in progress. The lack of vision in the stadium at the moment does not seem to faze her at all. The only thing she's worried about at the moment is her next attack and how she plans to go about it. With the rain, hail and mist all forming a cold version of a sauna, a cloud has literally formed at ground level in Slateport Stadium, just past sunset.

The announcement then comes across the public address system that Dawn has only thirty seconds remaining to finish her appeal. Solana wonders with these attacks continuing to blanket the arena like they are, what she is gonna do to attempt to wow an attached audience like the one she has right now.

Such questions are answered soon afterwards when Dawn points her arm up into the sky and says, "Now, Mamoswine! Brighter days are ahead! Use your icicle spear attack to clear the airwaves!" The attack, much like the appeal, mirrors May's earlier attempt in a lot of ways. Then again, it does not given the fact that Mamoswine stays within his element for the majority of his appeal to deliver a fine performance while using four large icicles to cut through the cloud and carry the precipitation out into the sky. Each icicle strike burns the cloud to nothing and the session ends with twelve seconds remaining in the appeal.

It did its job. The rangers in the club were on the edge of their seat the entire time, and it appears the same could be said of the fans who witnessed this live. It ended with wild cheering live and a smatter of respectful applause from the five VIPs knowing that Dawn is the competition of their representative. They held in their peace for her and to hear the praise from all five judges and the floor reporter, Robert. They thought, among other things, that the appeal was quite creative and stuck to the Pokémon's traits and same attack types. Many references were made to the appeal by May and the use of weather as a theme, but they all point to the fact that May used many technical machines to pull off attacks for Skitty and make a grand showing, while Dawn kept things simple using only attacks that are most familiar to Mamoswine according to their type and not going beyond that throughout the appeal.

The total number of points that she deserved was somewhat in question at the time that the judges had alone to make their decision, but when Robert called for Dawn's score, one would be hard pressed to find someone in the arena of neutral standing that did not think that Dawn deserved her score of fifty, only the second perfect score of the day. Tired, the enthusiasm that many in the stadium expected to see from the Sinnoh coordinator was not there, but she did have a smile on her face, especially when Robert informed her that she would be the number one seed for tomorrow's elimination rounds by virtue of the fact that she finished her appeal in less time than May did. Robert again states that Dawn will be the number one seed and May will be number two for the championship bracket of sixteen. The video ends with Dawn walking down the ramp backstage and a few people packing up to head back to their hotels and beat the midnight rush.

"That was damn impressive," Kellyn remarks apprehensively. "You certainly have a task on your hands for tomorrow. Do you know what seed you are and who you face?"

"I think I'm the…eleventh seed—no," she says, remembering that Dawn went on last. "I'm twelfth. The director told me right after my appeal that I was in at an eleventh seed and then Dawn came in and knocked me down to twelfth."

"So that means that you face the fifth seed," Spencer concludes while checking his remote again. He turns the channel to live sports news and, just as he thought, they are covering the tournament in full and are breaking down the brackets. A check of the bottom of the screen shows him and the other rangers that the fifth-ranked coordinator and Solana's first opponent for Sunday afternoon will be, "Sandra Van Hollen, it appears."

"I don't know much of anything about her," she admits. "Well, I'll have to do with her what I did to the appeal and nail her. No worries, though, right? We're in, and that's what we came here to do; get our feet in the door. Now, Spencer, could you pull up my appeal and let me see how I looked?"

"Solana's appeal coming up," he says like a waiter on the clock and with a few presses of the remote button, the rangers look at their female team member walk to the ring with great determination while hearing the cheers and whistles from a pumped crowd in the stands.

* * *

While people never get this sort of feeling completely, fully or absolutely, the two teens who ditched the mainstream dessert shops for a quaint creamery on the outskirts of town, at this point in time, are satisfied. Engaged youths, Kelly and May, at the behest of the latter, enjoyed their own shares of ice cream favorites with May munching on a heaping helping of rocky road. As she devoured the dish, she would remark about not having such loaded rocky road since she tried an organic brand from a shop on the Orange Islands during a family vacation.

For Kelly, her sweet satisfaction came from a far less traditional flavor blending as she first sampled and then tried numerous mixings of frozen creams before stumbling upon a combination tried and true, but not necessarily for ice cream. Running into the union of strawberry and banana many times as a young girl and even having it some days after her high school classes at age six meant that the flavor was branded into her conscious as something delicious and a good habit to keep. While the ice cream took this past tradition of strawberries and bananas after school to a whole new level, she didn't mind it and even said that she thought it was better than her partner's rocky road. May respectfully disagreed with her.

The shop, called 'Clean Slate Ice Cream', a play on the name of the city and the manner in which they make a majority of their treats, had only a few patrons on a night where many of the eateries would normally be chock full of customers and a line for those waiting on service. That is not the case here as the building has about as many customers as can be counted on one hand, allowing for intimate conversations on a myriad of topics to take place here.

Among the most pertinent of topics includes their upcoming marriage. Though, again, any conversation of that and the ceremony that is certain to come is only in the stages of planning at the moment through passing statements and questions. There will be times later for the two seventeen-year-olds to actually sit down and talk with most of their family about what they want to do, but that will require them actually knowing that the two are related in a romantic respect and that needs an announcement. Therein lies Kelly's desire not to steal any coordinator's thunder should May lose in tomorrow's elimination rounds making her fiancées performance on Sunday afternoon that much more important. Another opportunity for a coming out party at this grand scale may not come around again for them.

Overall, both girls come to the conclusion that the day has been quite the adventure for many different reasons, and Kelly can look back at it all and honestly laugh at some of the outright absurdity inherent within the day since her very unique wake-up call. As they walk back to the Slateport Milton to go to bed and go over some final plans before tomorrow's production meeting, stadium walkthrough and final practice, the realization of their error comes up in conversation.

"We ran around like chickens with are heads cut off trying to find them after Paul set me straight," Kelly jokes. "I'm glad that things did not turn out how I thought they might. I remember quite well right after we got together, Conway and Holly did the same when they had a class at Rustboro Academy together and like I said earlier today, I didn't want what happened to me to happen to anyone else."

"I understand and while we probably could have gone about it a different way than we did," May responds, attempting to switch the subject so that Kelly does not dwell on her ex for too long, "I know your heart was in it and wanting to make sure that the four of them were safe and, most important, weren't harming anybody else."

"That's right, and it…"

"Tomorrow's the big day," the Petalburg native speaks, successfully turning the conversation into her favor in the hopes of preventing Marina's name from accidentally being brought up when such a walk down memory lane is unnecessary.

Although May could not really tell at night, she suspects that given the change in subject may have perked her girlfriend's mood. "Are you ready for it? I mean, this _is_ the reason we came here; so that you could win this tournament."

"Like I said on Friday, I think that with the team that you put together for me, I haven't been more ready than I am right now. All six of my Pokémon are ready for this; Blaziken has never let me down in past battles. I've got Blastoise to work with. You saw how Skitty, Kecleon and Luxio handled in battle. I'm ready to just get this done. This is what we've been working for in the last four weeks, Kelly, and I don't want to let any of these people down. Neither do our buddies. So whether you put Dawn in front of me, Drew, Brianna, Solana or Jessminder really doesn't matter to me at this point! Bring all of them on; because I'm on such a high right now, I could beat anyone, including the champs like Solidad, Juan or Wallace. Say, Kelly, what time is it?"

"Hang on," she says before checking her wristwatch and becoming wide-eyed once she saw the time. "It's a quarter past eleven, May!"

"Are you serious?" she exclaims, looking at the watch herself and then looking at her own cell phone. "Good night! We've been out _that_ long?"

"Well, that is partially my fault," Kelly admits as the two take a standstill by a street corner just outside of the Slateport city limits. "Harley was the one who suggested going to 'Clean Slate' to get away from the city and to enjoy some of the best ice cream in the area. I made the place sound fantastic, and really, it was great, but it required a tram ride to get us there…"

"And now, all of the trams are shut down until early tomorrow morning," May adds, completing the spoken thought of her betrothed, "and the hotel is at least six miles away from here! That's gotta be at least a two-hour walk! By the time we finish it, we'll be too pooped out to even wake up for the mandatory meeting."

Looking up at the sky and remembering some of the meteorological signs from the times she watched the sky with her folks, Kelly comes to the prediction that, "Not to mention, given the look of the clouds in the sky and the cooler temperatures, it almost looks like it could rain."

"Really?" asks the coordinator, who did not know of any predictions made about the weather that fell in line with her girlfriend's as she says to her after sounding quite surprised.

"Yep. Certainly looks like it. But it's probably just a passing shower," she assures May. "That's likely the reason why you didn't hear anything about it until I said that it was possible. You know, now that I think about it, we don't really have to wait on any public transportation. We can use our Pokémon!" Before May can say even a word of protest complaining of suffering burns after attempting to ride her Blaziken out of tough spots in the past, Kelly pulls out one of her own Poké Balls with marking and logos on it that are in line with the Rustboro Academy. "Velos, come on out!" she commands and with these words, out comes a Pidgeot. The only difference between this one and any one that could be found out in the wild is its much larger size and the green markings on the nails of his talons, much like nail polish.

May, once again, is surprised to see her fiancée with this powerful ally of a Pokémon in what appears to be a super size. "Kelly?"

"No, Velos isn't mine," she clarifies. "He's on loan to me from Rustboro Academy for research of an all natural growth supplement that is virtually side-effect free. So, what do you think about him?"

"He's a thoroughbred, Kelly! I've never seen a Pidgeot this big before in my life!"

"And he can get us to the Slateport Milton in about a minute if you can just hang on for the ride. What do you say, love? I can see it now; Kelly and May write their names in the sky this evening on the back of our buddy, Velos?"

At this point, though she could just as easily blame it on the cold, May is shivering. Kelly always seemed to have a way with words and this moment in time is certainly no exception.

"Well, May?"

"Well," she begins, "I say…let's make like the pen to this paper canvas!"

Leaning in for a kiss on her forehead, Kelly remarks, "That's my girl!" Then she hops onto Velos, asking May to do the same, which she does. "Velos, take us to the Slateport Milton hotel, about five miles south by southeast. You'll wanna look for a high-rise with a white-painted rod standing on top of a building in the center with four corners and flat roofs. Got it?"

Velos smiles back at Kelly as they fly high up in the air with quick velocity and acceleration behind the movement. The action by the bird Pokémon was so sudden that May found herself having to grab tightly onto Kelly's waist like she was the one who had a fear of falling to her untimely death. Breathing heavily and cursing herself for even considering checking how things looked below her, she looks up to the pilot of this flight, who looks back at her with a big, toothy smile going from one end of her face to the other. "Enjoying the ride, dear? Be sure to hold on tight!"

At that moment, May relaxes for the remainder of the ride, which lasted only a minute and a half. During the tail end of the ride on Velos, May kept telling her fiancée that she would get hers before the weekend comes to a close. As the couple makes their landing in front of the entrance of the Milton, however, Kelly shrugs off such notions saying "We'll just see about that, May." Pulling out the loaner Pokémon's Poké Ball, Kelly presses the button on the front, saying, "Velos, return!" Once back in his Poké Ball, Kelly thanks Velos for guiding them safely back to the hotel. "This sure reduced our time having to travel back to the hotel by foot didn't it?"

"It certainly did, Kelly. Thanks for the ride—Kelly? Where are you going?"

"That mother fucker!" she screams while running—not walking to the doors of the hotel lobby.

"Kelly, what…"

"Marina!" the professor screams at the top of her lungs. While it seemed that everyone in the lobby heard what she had to scream, there was one exception in the girl whom the call was addressed to. Seeing that her ex is listening to headphones on an mp3 player, she decides to speak with her on an even more personable stance. Tapping her on the shoulder gets her attention to the point where the Johto native actually opens her eyes to see a sight which she would much rather like to avoid.

"Fuck this," she says, not even acknowledging Kelly. Although smaller than her ex-girlfriend and not as strong, Kelly grabs the older girl by the collar to keep her from going too far away.

"You're not going anywhere, Marina," she deliberately informs the 'Idol'. "Not until I get some answers."

"I have nothing to say to you," she contends, not even having the respect enough to call Kelly by her name. "Now if you'll excuse me, I must be going back to my hotel room."

"How can you be so cruel about this, Marina?" Kelly emotionally asks. "We were _together_, and for you to deny that is like denying a part of yourself. How could you deny that and bury it into the ground like it never happened?"

Freeing herself from the grip of her ex, Marina runs to the stairs, with her only words being, "Leave me alone, please! Just forget it! It's done! Good night!" Nothing else, not even an acknowledgement of what happened in the past between the two of them, took place, leaving Kelly wondering what it will take for this human to admit to err.

May, who watches the whole scene unfold in front of her, feels for her friend, lover and partner, but has no idea how to deal with it without triggering some sort of deep emotion better suited for privacy's sake. "Kelly, I…I don't…I can't say anything to fix this or make it right with my words, or…"

"Fuck her."

"Excuse me?"

"I said…fuck her, fuck her, FUCK her!"

"Kelly…"

"How could she be so heartless? I gave her more than just a relationship! I trusted her, and she abandoned me and my parents! She can kiss my fucking ass, May. That cold bitch can just go…" Kelly can't get much more out of her system before crumbling down to the ground in tears. May is right there to console her and immediately wraps her arms around her girlfriend.

"It's gonna be okay, Kelly," she assures her, kissing her forehead and protecting her from the glazes and the stares from people in the lobby. "What?" she asks them. "How many of you would do this for a friend in need, huh? What makes me so special? I'm May Maple and I'm consoling my heartbroken friend here. Should that be a surprise? Should that be a big story? No! She's my friend. Really, she's more than that! I don't see you doing this for your friends; being there for them, unless you need something. Well in this case, it's _her_ who stands in need. She's hurt and I'm gonna give her a shoulder to cry on." Seeing that they haven't gotten the hint yet, May gets right to the point and tells everyone, "Go! Get the hell out of here! There's nothing for you to see here! Go on, now!" And slowly but surely, they depart, leaving May with her one and only to find some way to settle her down after a bad exchange with an even worse person.

"Come on, let's get to bed," May somberly suggests, picking up Kelly and walking her in the direction of the elevators.

"She wouldn't even say my name, May," Kelly blubbers. "It's like I don't exist to her. How can I go beyond this bullshit if I can't even get answers to what happened? I have a right to know what was on her mind to want to just leave me like that. How can I have a great future if so much of my present is defined by my lack of a past? How, May? How?"

"I don't know, Kelly, and it's breaking my heart knowing that you feel like this and you shouldn't have to, you understand? Marina is just being selfish. I see that now. She won't get away with it, you hear me? I won't allow her to do this anymore. You will get your answers to this if I have anything to say about it."

"May," she replies while still cradled in her fiancée's arms, "you don't have to…"

"I know. I don't have to, I _need_ to, Kelly. For you and your health and because of the fact that whenever her name is mentioned or I see her around here, I don't see the Kelly I fell in love with eighteen months ago. I see…someone that's lost. I need to do something and get you back for good. I can't stand back idly while she makes a fool out of everyone who thinks she's this great role model. Look, no more about Marina. Let's just go to sleep, now. We'll figure something out in the morning, okay? It'll be all right. You will thrive from this. I promise you."

"You do?"

"I do," May replies, not getting the double meaning behind what she just said.

"Okay," she sleepily says. "I can't be hurt again, though, May. I don't know if I could take it."

"I'd never do what she did. Besides, I'm in too deep with you. Every other girl I'd come across would remind me of you."

"Good point," Kelly admits, while quickly fading into dreamland. "You wouldn't find another one quite…like…" and that's all she wrote for Kelly, who after the confrontation with her ex, likely didn't have the stomach for anymore to do with Saturday March 13, 2010.

In some ways, the day was a great success and a fine testament to the hard work that Kelly, her girlfriend, her cousin, his boyfriend, her girlfriend's parents and a slew of other friends and family made over the last month to prepare for the Grand Festival. In other instances, the demons within Kelly seemed to have no remorse for the doctorate in training. Marina's situation caused her to overreact to her friends around her and draw conclusions based upon her sordid history that were incorrect and off base. On multiple occasions, her circle of friends had to pull her back to reality and remind her that not all people are underhanded and cold to their fellow individuals, but the idea still resonates within her that it could happen to her again. May might give her hope of those days being long gone, but to that, she can never be too sure.

In her mind, luck has to be a tall, blue-eyed brunette girl who actually cared and carried for her…otherwise she'll be left with nothing to believe in any longer.

The outside world would have made off with that which is most important to her and left her like a lost child who doesn't know where to go…the greatest unfortunate incident of all.

* * *

A/N: And so ends a LENGTHY 'Saturday' arc. This will lead us right into Sunday morning, and the climactic battles and end of this epic arc.

Until then, this has been Rave!


	40. Tales of a Wet One

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

The Rangers are guests of honor, VIP, if you will, at a local bar. It is here that they watch Dawn perform with her Mamoswine and get the second perfect score of fifty during the day. They also watch Solana's appeal and learn that she, the twelfth seed, will face the fifth seed Sandra Van Hollen. That same night, Kelly and May go out to celebrate their recent engagement with some ice cream at a local shop suggested by Harley. Using Velos, a Pidgeot Kelly has on loan from the Rustboro Academy for research, the two fly back to the hotel in minutes during the late Saturday night. When they make it back over to the Slateport Milton Hotel, Velos is put back into his Poké Ball and Kelly suddenly has an outburst as she goes inside of the hotel lobby. The outburst was in response to seeing Marina. When Kelly attempted to confront her and ask her questions about why she abruptly left her, Marina says nothing only looking to leave the lobby and head back to her hotel room. Kelly is left in tears with May literally carrying her bride to be to the elevators and back to their rooms to get some sleep.

NOTE: The third and final arc, the 'Sunday' arc, begins here. This will take us all the way to the end of the story, with a nice surprise to boot.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 40- Tales of a Wet One)

* * *

Pitter-patter is how it goes, or how it's personified throughout history. It's been used to describe little feet, particularly those of young children, but even the sleeping Kelly would have to say that she's far off from thinking along those lines as of yet, even though she'd love to have children with her fiancée in the years to come as she let Savannah Van Hollen know one night ago.

In any event, pitter patter of another sort has awaken Kelly, and as she opens her eyes, she learns that this morning wake-up call has come just a few minutes before she set the alarm clock for her and May at 5:30 in the morning.

Stretching out her arms and yawning loud enough that she makes the figure over by the bedroom window turn her head over in her direction to see if she's all right. Rubbing the cloudiness out of her eyes, she focuses upon her girlfriend by the window, fully dressed and looking outside at the strong and steady rain that has pelted the area since early this morning. She notices that she's in the same clothes that she wore for Saturday.

Turning back over to Kelly in the bed, May asks her, "Did you sleep well?"

"As well as can be expected," she answers as she props herself up on the bed no longer laying down, but rather, sitting up. "How long have you been up?"

"About an hour," May answers, with all answers becoming more neutral in tone and somewhat depressing and drab in their feel. "I got woken up by the rain just like you did. I followed what you had to say about it and I didn't think much about what would happen as far as the weather because all signs—okay, _most_ signs pointed to otherwise good weather throughout the weekend. Now I look at my phone and all I keep seeing on the phone is the fact that this rain should last into the evening."

"You're kidding me?"

"I only wish I were, babe. They even said on television that it would be the first 'sloppy' Grand Festival elimination round in about twenty years. Sure, it's nice that we get to be a part of history today, but that's not so nice for my signature Pokémon to get caught up in this muck all day long."

"Oh, man, that's right!" Kelly remembers as she gets out of bed and heads over to May to give her a 'good morning' hug and kiss, making sure not to pat her fiancée on the back with her right hand in its cast. She silently remarks that even in the early morning before the sun is supposed to come up, that her sweetheart still looks great and is a welcome morning sight, without question. "Do you even know if Blaziken can handle wind and rain like this?"

"I doubt it because if you remember back to when we started training for today, you told me that it would be best if I got my Pokémon out in situations that weren't just clear and sunny. If something like this did happen, we'd be prepared for it. That was what you told me to do or something along those same lines. So I took one of our off days and tested Blaziken's ability to attack and work while under rainy conditions using a sprinkler and a couple of garden hoses. My mom actually watched over it and we found that Blaziken just couldn't cope with that much water flowing over her at one time. Even when we attempted to tone it down to a manageable level for her, it really didn't work out and we actually had to use a couple of potions to make sure Blaziken didn't end up in any kind of shock from our training."

"At least you learned from it, but perhaps something might occur today so that you may be able to use Blaziken. I mean, if the weather forecast doesn't live up to what they're saying, then the rain should clear at some point and that would mean that Blaziken would be of some use to your efforts." All of this breaking down to the situation May finds herself in is impromptu to say the least, but Kelly is certainly one to think on her feet based on her extensive record as an educator.

"Well, maybe…hopefully."

"Hey, I'm just saying that this isn't the end of the world by any means and there's no reason to trade Blaziken in for another Pokémon if we aren't even sure that this rain will continue all day today. If not Blaziken, then you can use Blastoise and if not him, then there are always the other powerhouses in your group. There is a reason why handicappers gave you 12-1 odds of winning this whole thing. Put your team up against anyone else on any given day, and I know that you'll come out of this tournament on top."

Kelly is working her powers of persuasion to the best of her ability and doing it on someone who is, surprisingly, one of her biggest critics. While both of them have their daring and ambitious sides about them, the purple-haired one is likely the more outgoing of the two. Being a prodigy of sorts, though never one to brag about it, she learned very early on the importance of knowing what people need before they are given what they like. This came about in her teaching and educating several hundred students every year, doing interviews and speaking arrangements around the world because of her work and negotiating what can be a very difficult process in terms of fundraising, especially for various projects under her control.

But this one, especially given the point where May is at this year's Grand Festival, is all but out of the hands of the professor. She's gonna have no other choice but to put her trust in her fiancée, much like she did late one August night; a decision she doubts she'll ever regret because it led her to true love unlike she's ever felt before in her life. Much like the encouragement she got from May the night they admitted feelings for one another, Kelly has to return the favor for her given all the time they've spent together planning for this one day nearly eight years in the making.

With May looking out at the window and the scene of whipping rain and wind coming together to pelt the Slateport City streets, she appears downhearted but is taking the situation in stride knowing there is not much that she can do about a steady downpour. The air might have been taken out of her sails given this development of a soaking, but she knows one thing to be true. "Everyone else will have to deal with this, too. I can win."

Kelly smiles as she knows that her wife-to-be gets it and is not going to let this setback determine what will happen this afternoon if she has anything to say about it. "I know you can. Now let's shake some legs, get dressed and head over to the stadium for the production meeting and walkthrough," she says, redirecting their conversation away from the rain for a moment. "I know that if we give it a shot, we can at least see if Blaziken can handle this weather, but based on what you've told me, I think we might even be reaching on that notion."

Reaching for the soles of her feet, May removes her socks from them, exposing them to the air conditioned room as she gets a head start in undressing while making her way over to the bathroom. Before she opens the door to the shower, she turns over to Kelly and gives her an unexpected invitation. "You know we _could_ save time and shower together if you want."

"Wait," Kelly says, doing a double take. "Come again? Sh-shower together?"

After getting a chuckle's worth of the girl stammering and getting a bit bothered by the half-frankness of what just came out of her fiancée's mouth, May saves her from any further redness showing up on her face and tells her, "Shit. I'm just kidding, Kelly. We'll have plenty of time for stuff like that sooner than you think."

"You still wanna wait like we talked about, right?"

"Don't get me wrong," she clarifies. "I get tempted all the time; pretty much every day. But unlike some people, I respect your wish to save that until we get married."

Kelly knew that her girlfriend would bring that up in their conversation, eventually, and as painful as the memories from about four years ago were for her, she knows that she has to get answers and some form of a release in order to move on with her life. But how can she accomplish that when Marina, the one person who holds the key in this entire debacle, won't even speak to her on the matter? In fact, any time she comes near the New Bark Town resident, she goes the other way without a word, leaving her angrier, more frustrated and with many more questions.

"Look, May, I thank you for showing concern for what happen all those years ago. You saying that you want to help me get beyond what happened is noble of you, but I don't know how much good it will do, especially when Marina isn't saying a damn thing. Not to me, not to Jimmy, and not even to her family. What makes what you plan on doing so different?"

"Because Marina hasn't met me," she smiles. "I'm willing to do whatever it takes to get my girl back, but you already know this. We can't go much further until she lets you go. Once she does that and admits her wrongdoing, the sky is the limit for us. Otherwise, we're stuck in this rut of doubt and scandal all because someone doesn't want to look bad. Come on. How can someone hold that for so long and not feel a thing? Clearly, Marina's a weak individual and once I take advantage of that obvious chink in her armor, there's not much that she can do about it because she'll be exposed for the wench that she is. What will she do, then? What could she do?"

"I just hope…" Kelly speaks before really giving it thought. Taking another few seconds to collect her thoughts, she responds. "Can you do it? I don't want to seem like a victim any longer, but it's hard not to feel that way given all that happened to me when I was thirteen. I just want answers. That's all. What's happened has happened, but can't I get some explanation? Let me go and get some reasons for what went down. Even if it's because you were scared and you give me the reason why, I need to hear it!"

"And you will. I meant what I said when I told you I_ will_ do my damndest to make sure it happens," May assures her fiancée.

Smiling, Kelly knows herself to be truly blessed, fortunate and favored. However you may refer to it, this teenager is it. "Why are you so good to me, May? Really, there's not much to me and I keep wondering why me of all the girls…and boys you could be with."

"Are you serious?" she asks the girl who remains standing over by the window. "Why am I so good to you?"

"Yeah."

"Because you're you," she admits. "It's everything about you like the way you keep me up most nights on the phone talking about everything and talking about nothing all at the same time. How you make me laugh with your stories about college life. I love being around you. It just feels so good to spend time with you and get to know you better each and every day. That's why I say don't ever change." Pointing to her heart, May makes the point, "I have a feeling that it'll only get better with time."

Kelly feels as if she could burst into tears of joy and elation at any second, but holds it together to the point that she says "Thank you, May."

"You're welcome. Hey. Who's your girl?"

"You are, May," she answers as the two interlock their left hands with one another, as a gesture of the bond between them. While they would usually use their right hands for this exercise, the somewhat mangled state of Kelly's right hand makes this difficult and somewhat awkward as the partners know that they're using the wrong hands, even if there's not much they can do about that now. "And I couldn't be happier to know that it's true."

"Now, if you'll excuse me, it's time to get down to business and get this shower started."

"All right, I'll be waiting," Kelly informs her fiancée as she disappears into the bathroom. Upon closing the door behind her, the professor makes further comments on the matter, claiming, "I'll always be waiting for you, May. I've learned my lesson and there's no need to rush this because you're worth it. If you can help me with this, then I will be eternally grateful. Death won't even be able to tear you apart from me, May Maple, if you can help me thrive, just like you promised." As the water from inside the bathroom and not outside their hotel room runs, a final thought enters the mind of the troubled teen. "Don't think I won't hold you to this, May. Like I told you that weekend, I don't wanna be let down. I can't take another disappointment."

* * *

'This has got to be the greatest wake up call in the history of the world,' thinks Paul Marin while a near-indelible smile is on his face and he takes several short and quick breaths as he lies sitting up in the bed of his boyfriend, Ash. The sun has just come out and lightly blanketed much of Pallet Town with a coating of sunshine with a tinge of orange. Conspicuous by his absence in the midst of all of this, however, is Ash, who is nowhere to be seen upon sunrise. All that exists within the room of the Pokémon trainer extraordinaire is Paul with his smile worn much like a heart on a sleeve and a giant lump at the foot of the bed.

"That's it. That's it. Oh, yes. That's all I want. All I want," Paul monologs. "Keep up. You're the best, man!" he says to whomever before shaking and shivering while in his seat. He knows that that feeling deep within his being and centered around the area where all life has its genesis is at its peak about to climb higher and higher to the ultimate of summits. Its name is not Everest, however, and its walls never run cold.

"This is it! Oh, God! Faster! Faster, I'm gonna come!" Whomever is underneath the bed with him got the message and goes faster at around the same pace at the large lump in the bed does it and Paul's motions and gyrations in the bed seem match up with the ones made by whoever makes up this abnormal mass.

Clearly, Paul doesn't think about any of this though, as he's reached critical mass and is about to blow. "Oh, fuck! God! Oh, Jeez!" More moaning and noises of a unique sort reverberate throughout the room and if not for the fear of waking the neighbors or Delia, he might have gotten even louder with his pleasure-drenched screaming.

As the saying goes, the only way to go from the very top is down, so while his orgasm was a powerful one, not the most powerful but a powerful one, the feeling of bliss only happens for a little while before he's brought back down to reality by a knock on the door.

"Paul? Ash?" a woman's voice calls to the other side of the room. "You were kind of loud in there."

"I'm sorry, mom," a muffled voice underneath the sheets says as his apology.

"Are you two boys decent, at least?"

"Yes, ma'am," Paul assures Delia. "Come on in." As she enters her sons room to find both Ash and his boyfriend in the bed looking like a pair of teens that just got caught, she can't help but snicker for a moment before she feels it only necessary and proper to relieve the tension in the room. Fully dressed, she beat the sun to business this morning, as she put the finishing touches on desserts and other party favors for this afternoon.

"Relax, you two," she remarks. "Like I said, you're both adults. What you do in the privacy of Ash's room or in your homes is your business. All I can do as a caring and responsible mother is support you two and make sure you're safe." Looking closely at Ash once more, especially at his face, she stifles the idea of laughing her tail off for now.

Moving on, instead, to the reason why she came up to Ash's room, Delia gives both her son and Paul the news. "In any event, I got a call from Reggie."

"You did?" Paul asks. After Delia nods, he then inquires, "Well, how's my bro?"

"Doing well, though he has to admit that traveling from Veilstone to Pallet for a party is a real bear, he does want to be here and he said that he'll be brining…Jamie? Jamie! Yes, Reggie said that he'll be bringing along your mentee to the party."

"Ah, nice!" Ash remarks. "He got cleared to come here. That should be fun, right, Paul?"

"Yeah, you're right. It'll be great to have him here, especially around you. I mentor Jamie, but you might as well be right alongside me doing it. You're like a magnet to him."

"Oh, yeah!" he remembers. "This'll be the first time that you're gonna meet Jamie, right mom?"

"Aside from hearing stories about you, him and Paul hanging out together and seeing a picture from a year ago, yes. This'll actually be the first time I meet young Master Coley in person."

"Then you're in for a great treat, Ms. Ketchum," Paul compliments. "I swear to you, the boy is nothing short of a gentleman and a real personality to boot, even at age nine."

"All right, well I think now would be the good time to shake a leg, get dressed and ready for his arrival, then," Delia tells the boys.

"You're right. We'll hit the showers in just a moment."

"No problem," she responds as she looks to leave. Before she does that, however, she has to make the point to her son. "Oh, and Ash?"

"Yes, mom?"

"Please pay close attention to your mouth when you wash up, okay? It looks like you had a field day with my clear icing. Just a mother-to-son heads up," she notes as she walks out the door, shutting it behind her and then afterwards laughing to the point that both her boys can hear her get to the point of hyperventilation.

Paul, looking over at Ash, sees exactly what Delia was talking about. Somehow, someway, a long strand of his own seed out of the corner of his boyfriend's mouth. 'Now I see why Ash's mom was trying to hold it in,' he silently remarks.

While he marvels at how long it stayed on his mouth, he confuses Ash who asks him "What, Paul?" in the midst of his silence. Paul responds by leaning into Ash with his tongue out doing the job of cleaning his mouth all on his own and getting a taste of his own product to boot.

"It looked good on you," he says afterwards as he gets out of the bed and heads for the shower in his birthday suit and no shame. "Don't think about it too much. Your head might explode. Just join me in the shower in two minutes. You want Jamie to see us like this?"

"Oh, no!"

"Then haul ass, man! Oh and we'll probably have to do the laundry after we get dressed, too."

Looking down at what the two have done right before the day has even really started, Ash gets the hint, for once, and tells Paul, "Point taken," as he strips off the only thing in the room that needs it; the bed. After that, he takes the quick walk over to the washing machine to clean the sheets off before noon. Using a small amount of detergent in the medium-sized load, he turns it on a normal setting and follows the older Paul into the shower to kill two birds with one stone.

And so that an off the wall version of the birds and the bees doesn't have to be told to an impressionable nine-year-old orphan.

It's all relative, after all.

* * *

For a hotel that does not cost nearly as much as the Slateport Milton and does not have the same amenities and proximity to this morning's Grand Festival, Solidad can honestly say that she has not gotten a better sleep ever since she gave birth to her son. While she did have to wake up twice during the night to tend to Damien, he was no trouble for all that it's worth and Solidad was able to get enough rest in that she actually woke up before the alarm clock was to have rung at 6:45 a.m.

Although she would rather not have the alarm clock on for Damien's sake so as not to wake him before he's ready to get up, Drew needs it in order to get up in time for the production meeting, where, as he told Solidad, he will likely get the news that he will have to turn over his license to the executives for the next six months.

As she sits up from bed and rubs the sleep out of her eyes, she turns over to the portable crib where Damien is supposed to be sleeping, only to find no trace of her newborn son. Turning back over to the beds, she also sees that Drew is absent in the bed, which has been made and shows no trace of anyone having slept in it last night.

"Drew?" she questions above her regular speaking voice. "Drew!" she asks again; this time, louder than before.

"Solidad, please!" a male voice whispers while entering the room with the beds from the kitchen. Drew enters the room fully dressed as he cradles a young baby boy in his hands rocking him back and forth while doing his best to make sure he doesn't stir from Solidad yelling his name. "Damien just went back to sleep. I fed him about an hour ago and rocked him until he fell asleep."

"Oh, Drew," she responds, lightening her face and feeling a little bit guilty for her actions. "Here I am panicking for nothing and I could've woken Damien up."

"No, don't worry about it at all," Drew assures his ex. "Honestly, I can understand why you would be so concerned. After all, Damien is your son, you've been caring for him by yourself the past three months and without warning, I take him to the kitchen, get him a bottle and see if he's in need of anything else."

"Drew, thank you for doing that, because Lord knows I've not gotten any breaks since he was born. I know you didn't have to…"

"Come on, Solidad," Drew interrupts while putting Damien back into his crib. "You know that I've shirked responsibility since his birth back at the start of the year. If anything, I should be thanking you for even allowing me to be in the same room as my son. With the way I've been acting…it's a wonder."

"Hey," Solidad asserts, "both of us have really not been the best parents that we know we can be. But if we keep on dwelling on what we didn't do and not focus on what we're doing and what we're gonna do, what kind of parents does that really make us?"

"Old codgers, Solidad," Drew answers, nor thinking about what he has just said. Despite it, the comment conjures up laughter from both parents and marks the first time in a while where Solidad has actually smiled about something concerning her recent life.

"I don't want to be old anytime soon, Drew, but I do want to do the best for our child, so arguing about the past even with him being as young as he is won't do us any favors. I'm willing to let a lot of our old stuff go, for Damien's sake."

"If it means I get to experience some of the things that he and I have done in the past hour or so, then it will all be worth it." Looking back at his son resting comfortably in the crib, he ponders how the weekend might have been a blessing in disguise. "Damien actually smiled at me when I gave him his bottle earlier. He looked up and showed me his mouth and…" Drew finds it quite difficult to continue as he is getting emotional thinking about what happened before Solidad woke up, but does keep going in order to get his point across. "Now that my father, the contest directors and a few other people have got my head back on and working, I realize what I've been missing. I…I can't even begin to tell you how good it felt to see him smiling up at me and not once crying or wondering who this was. He entrusts me to take care of him, provide him with his every need and watch over him. I didn't get it then because I was wrapped up in just continuing on like nothing happened, but now I know that there is no substitute for being there and being a father to your child."

Drew then turns away from Solidad once more. Perhaps a matter of pride has caused this feeling, but once she hears the sniffling from the room and realizes that it's not coming from her son, who remains sound asleep, she goes towards Drew, wrapping her arms around him while he is clearly crying and saying, "What the hell was I thinking? I missed out on something like that because of…because of bullshit! None of it even matters now. My relationship with Dawn is over. Despite that I always had to be seen as some public figure and show off this reputation as some kind of bad boy; none of that matters. Humph! I wish they could see me now, crying like a little bitch and only being ashamed because I didn't wise up sooner…and _rise_ up sooner."

"Okay," Solidad agrees, "but you're here now. Doesn't that count for something?"

"Oh, I'm here now," he sarcastically replies. "Yes, I'm here now, yes, I'm stepping up, but you and I both know that this is all long overdue. I should have been there from the beginning."

"There you go again, Drew, with should've, could've and would've. You say all of that, but I don't really care about it right now. Yes, you could've been there from the beginning, but that doesn't mean that you'll necessarily stay there until the end. No, you didn't get off to the right start," Solidad admits, "but you have six months, right?"

"Yes, I've been suspended for the next six months. I won't be able to coordinate again until mid-September."

"Well, if you still feel that way, then this will give you time to make up for what happened. Not to me, but to our son. Be the best dad that you can be and it's all bound to work out for the best as we try to get along and be civil for his sake at the same time. Do we have a deal?"

"A deal?"

"Yes. All I'm asking is for you to do your best to put these last three months behind you and spend these next six being the dad I know you can be. You admit that you were wrong. Well, that's the first step. Right now, it's all a matter of righting that wrong. Okay?"

"Yes, Solidad," Drew sniffles.

"No more tears, now. You've got a tournament coming up and you have to be focused. I see you're dressed and you've gotten your breakfast in, so those bases are covered."

"Yeah, I figured if I'm going out and not coming back for…half a year, then it should be with a bang and I'll give it my all in the process."

"Just like with Damien. I like it. You just give it your all, put all of your heart into this and you'll do just fine, rain or not."

He gets himself together and from there, the star coordinator nods in agreement with his ex. "You're right. I'm just more concerned about Damien right now than the Grand Festival. There'll be other ones, but I only have one child right now and he's gotta come first. It's no longer about providing for him because even if I don't coordinate again in my life, he'll be set. I just need to keep everything in perspective. That seems like the best course of action I've taken in a long time."

"I agree. Whatever works to bring you around to doing the right thing is fine in my book," Solidad says. Afterwards, a long yawn comes from out of her leading to a call of, "Oh! Didn't expect that to happen. I feel like I got a good night's sleep, too. How do both of those happen at once?"

"Beats me. Would you like some breakfast before we head over to the stadium?"

Seeing her son calmly resting in his crib, Solidad sees no problem with the offer and thinks how good it would be to just have breakfast again, and not think about past problems that have plagued her, just like she told to Drew. "Yeah. That sounds good, Drew. Real good."

Smiling right back at the mother of his son, he says. "I'm glad. Now what would you like?"

* * *

"Breakfast was certainly good, mom. The people at the Slateport Milton sure know how to take care of their special guests." Sandra, who has been up since before six o'clock, went with her mother to partake in breakfast before making the quick trip over to the stadium for interviews and production meetings.

"I agree," says her mother simply and honestly leaving her thoughts at just that.

The falling out, for lack of a better phrase, that the Van Hollens had late last night concerning two of their fellow female friends who they found out were more than jut friends is not evident this morning. While Sandra has wanted to bring it up and speak to her mother about the reasons why she put her in her place yesterday evening, the opportunity has not really presented itself to her. It's not as if Sandra considers what happened in the hotel hallway water under the bridge. On the contrary, both the young teen and young mother are keeping their interactions professional for the most part, as both are confident in their abilities and the thought of them being champion by the end of the afternoon.

Using their large umbrellas to protect them from what is quite a heavy downpour in the area, Sandra and Savannah lose the truly childhood experience of running through the rain for fear of being caught. In fact, one would believe that this pair was very used to the rain given their appropriate gear along with their mild temperament in spite of the whipping wind to complete the weather scenario for the morning. Despite it, they are not in much of a hurry right now, given that the production meetings do not begin for about two hours. This time, as suggested by the veteran, Savannah can be used for even more practice leading up to the big show.

"Hey, mom," Sandra says, deciding at last to open up about her feelings. She does this while the two of them are about two minutes away from the stadium entrance.

"Yes, dear?"

"I have to be honest with you; this morning has been just like walking on eggshells for me."

"Is this about May and Kelly?" she quickly interjects.

Sandra, for a split second, wondered if her mother was reading her mind, but quickly rid herself of those thoughts to answer, "Yes, ma'am."

"Sandra, to be honest, I don't know what there is to discuss."

"Well, I do!" she counters. "The things you said to both of them, all of which I found completely unfounded, were downright cruel and, dare I say it, bigoted."

What the daughter spoke to the mother was all done in motion, while the duo were walking along the pathway to the VIP entrance for the stadium, but these comments from Sandra have caused this duo to stop in their tracks with the rain continuing to do a pelting dance on their umbrellas.

Savannah appears as if she's about to say something to counter what was being told to her by her only child, but instead she walks forward to the stadium saying only as her defense, "You can think whatever you want, Sandra. It's your right."

"No, mom! Come on! Don't try to make this that simple when you know it's not! You've never had a problem with those two before learning about this, but all of a sudden, they're sick and wrong because they want to be together? I don't get that!"

"There are a lot of things you don't get, Sandra."

"Mom, you can't keep treating me like I'm an innocent little girl for much longer! I'm thirteen and I've known about homosexuality for about half of my life. I understand that this is how some people feel inside. How…I don't get what you mean when you keep saying that 'I don't get it'. No! I really think I do, mom! In fact, you know what I think? _You _don't get it!"

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me. You don't get it. You just nod or shake your head at every single issue and fail to consider that there are people involved. People just like you that haven't lived perfect lives, but want to do the best they can, nevertheless. It shouldn't matter what it is. What really matters is that they are still people, mother, and lesbian or not, that won't change. The fact that I'm friends with Kelly and May and they're getting engaged doesn't change the fact that they are still people and should be treated as such! That's what you don't seem to get."

Savannah doesn't know, honestly, whether to scold her daughter for essentially yelling at her during the end of her rant or to give her a hug and shake her hand for being exactly right, especially about the part concerning people not living perfect lives. With the dark sky and the clouds combined with the near gale force winds outside, Sandra can't see a single tear coming out of her mother's eye which causes her to turn away and softly say, "Maybe I really don't get it," before she runs the remainder of the pathway to the tunnel entrance and the security checkpoint.

"Mom!" That's the only exclamation that comes out of Sandra's mouth as she follows quickly after her mother to the same entrance asking, essentially pleading, for some explanation as to her leaving their conversation so quickly and without warning. Though she did expect something from her mother, this wasn't it and it left her with more questions than answers as the first two participants in the Grand Festival enter this modern day coliseum for battle.

As it is, however, the spectators of this sport are bound to be shortchanged by today's proceedings. Indeed, the action should be of a first class nature and the rain can only help matters in heightening the excitement to come in just a few more hours. No, while the battles on the field will be waged by well-trained, and powerful Pokémon, it is the battles off the field, the ones internally that we wage with ourselves and one another on a more than daily basis that are truly breathtaking, entertaining, exciting and worth going many lengths to see and witness for themselves.

For goodness sakes, let these battles continue!

* * *

A/N: And what a battle I went through just getting this chapter out here, but believe me when I say it was truly worth it to get that ComaShipping moment out there, including all the other early morning awakenings by the characters. Forthcoming are the wakeups of the Rangers, Swinging Foursome and breakfast with the Maples and Marins along with the first guests going to the Ketchum Grand Festival Party.

Until then, I'm still Rave!


	41. Uneasy Like Sunday Morning

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Kelly wakes up and sees May by their hotel window as a downpour takes place. This should affect Blaziken, her star Pokémon, negatively, as she is not able to take even a moderate amount of rain. May reassures Kelly that she'll do well, even win, and that she'll confront Marina and get some answers concerning their relationship. Paul, after having a very physically-charged moment with Ash where he was driven to climax is alerted by Delia that his mentee Jamie, a nine-year-old orphan, is coming to take part in the Grand Festival party being thrown. He'll be coming with Paul's brother Reggie. Both of them hurry up and get dressed.

Drew wakes up before Solidad and tends to Damien while during the moment he regrets ever pulling off the stunt that he did and intentionally missing the first three months of his son's life because the first morning has been nothing short of a joy. Solidad tells Drew that with six months suspended, he can work to make up all of that lost time. Sandra confronts her mother about her negative comments towards the recently engaged May and Kelly, claiming that her mother doesn't get it, and Savannah, after dodging the issue for a while, admits that she may not get it and runs to the stadium entrance.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 41- Uneasy Like Sunday Morning)

* * *

Final preparations are currently in order at the moment as Ash, Paul and Delia plan to party hearty with friends and family as the Grand Festival in Hoenn takes place in just a few hours time. The three have voluntarily taken on different responsibilities this morning to make preparations go smoothly this afternoon. Ash is taking care of items meant to be kept cool, like the drinks and certain salads inside of the coolers. While he does that, Paul is sharing the kitchen with Delia as he makes a crab dip for the occasion and Delia chops up differently colored peppers to put inside of her chef's salad.

With everyone on the same accord and the two young men knowing that playtime ended about an hour ago, great progress is made as whatever duties weren't taken care of yesterday have been, for the most part, taken care of now or don't need to be tended to until guests arrive.

Knowing this, the sound of a ding and a dong doesn't send Delia into panic, however...

"I got it!" say Ash and Paul in unison as they dash towards the front door, both eager and ready to accept guests for this fine get-together.

After only a couple of seconds, Paul makes it to the door first, insisting that he welcome in the first guests this morning. Opening the door, he finds only one surprise. Sure, Paul knew that his older brother, Reggie, and protégé would be there, but the arrival of Professor Oak, whom he thought would not come until the pre-festival show, caught him off guard if only for a moment.

While Paul seems to have temporarily lost use of his tongue, Ash greets all three males at the door with a call of "Guys! It's so nice of you all to come here."

Shaking the hands of the professor, Reggie and his guest, Jamie, Paul gets back to his senses and gives Reggie a hug.

"You're looking good, man," the older Marin brother has to admit. "Is Ms. Ketchum feeding you well?"

"I'll put it this way; every night, I go to bed feeling like I'm a stuffed pig," he answers. "She's a fantastic cook and it's been just great living with her and Ash these last few weeks. It…kind of reminded me of how we'd do that same thing with Conway way back when."

"Ah, I wondered when some of our guests would come through!" exclaims Delia as she heard the commotion at the door. Joining the crowd of gentlemen of varying ages, the first thing she notices is the face she's never seen until now. It's the face of a young boy, who appears to be around two-thirds the height of Ash. He's got skin the tone of a light rust brown with neatly gelled jet black hair darker than her own son. His eyes, again, reminded her of him so much as they were also brown with thin pupils square in the middle. He came dressed casually, but neatly in a scarlet red collared shirt and khaki shorts with leather sandals.

Reggie did speak of bringing a young boy to the house and through logic; she makes the point, "So this must be the young man that that I've heard so much about in recent days."

Paul, the mentor of this young kid for the past year or so, says "Jamie, this is the woman that I've been staying with for the last month and she's Ash's mom. Say hello to Ms. Ketchum."

Well, any friend or family member of Ash's had to be a good person, right? After all, she welcomed her home to Paul, who he's explained had his share of difficulties with Ash. Jamie needed no further convincing as seen by the way he walks over to the middle-aged woman and brings out his right hand. "It's very nice meeting you, Ms. Ketchum, and I should say that Ash talks about you all the time when he's in Veilstone."

"It's nice meeting you too, Jamie," she replies. Looking at the young man closely, the thought she had when she first saw him didn't leave her head.

To Jamie she appears to be spaced out, but there's only one way for him to be sure. "Ms. Ketchum, are you all right?"

These words break the trance and Delia is left a bit embarrassed because everyone around her is staring into her eyes to see if she is telling the truth or not. "Oh forgive me, everyone. It's just that—Professor, look at Jamie and tell me that he doesn't remind you of a certain someone."

Not expecting that, the professor nevertheless obliges with the request and takes a good look at Jamie to see that Delia is very much onto something. "Ah, yes. A near splitting image of someone we all know and love."

"Who's that?" Ash questions, not really following the words of his mom or mentor.

"Well, Ash, have you ever taken a moment to _look _at Jamie for yourself?" Professor Oak asks his protégé. "I mean, Delia had to point it out for me but after I saw it, I thought it was quite obvious. One look into his eyes and you can see that he looks quite a bit like you."

Ash quickly shrugs off much of the notion of that mentioned similarity by saying, "Well…somewhat. I won't rule it out, but I think you could say that about a lot of nine-year-olds; that they look like someone they know from their past. People say that all the time, you know?"

"I guess," Delia admits. "Say, Jamie. If you don't mind me asking, what's your nationality?"

"I don't mind," Jamie replies, though the subject leads to something quite depressing but nowhere near as it should be given his unique situation. "Even though I never knew my mom or dad, my…orphanage has all the information and they gave it to me because I won't ever see them...or know them for myself." Despite the light murmurs from those who don't know the story behind this young man, he continues, saying. "My dad was Scottish and my mom was a Filipina, so I'm of mixed race."

"Oh wow," are the words whispered from Delia before admitting what Ash already knows. "Ash's father was Filipino and Japanese. That's…that's very interesting, Jamie."

"Thanks," he says, being polite and not thinking much of his nationality or it being anything but a part of him.

"Mom!" Ash exclaims. "For goodness sake, it's probably just coincidence, you know?"

"It's a small world," Reggie responds, not believing the connections that are happening between people both known and unknown. "I mean, Jamie wasn't even gonna come here, at first, but Paul wanted to know if he wanted to spend the weekend out of the boys' home during spring break…"

"Reggie, please don't call it that," he scolds the much older male to the surprise of the others by the doorway. "Nobody knows what that means and that name is only used because 'orphanage' is now politically incorrect, but surprise! Everyone knows what _that _means!"

Seeing that his 'little brother' is a bit peeved because Reggie forgot about his feelings of his current lot in life, Paul decides to take some initiative and test out some skills. "Jamie," he says, signaling for the boy to come to his direction, "could you come here for a second? We'll just talk alone for a minute."

Following the instructions of his mentor, Master Coley walks in Paul's direction. Paul, who is situated by the steps, drops down to the younger boy's level and speaks with him, saying, "I'm not mad at you and I'm not gonna yell, Jamie. Anyone that spends a few minutes with you couldn't do that. It's just that being mad at Reggie isn't something you should make a habit."

"I'm not mad at Reggie," Jamie clarifies. "I just don't like the fact that he isn't honest about this stuff. I know more about this situation than he ever could. He's…overly enthusiastic about moments in my life and I get the wrong impression because things aren't the way I'd want them to be; not by a long shot."

"Well, that's my brother for you," Paul responds, especially noticing the wardrobe of his young protégé. "Even though he can be over the top, it's better than having a stick in the mud and…he can be cool to hang around with, right?"

"He is, but I'm…I'm just different when it comes to this, Paul. With my folks situation being what it is and me essentially living alone my entire life with neither of my parents, you become very protective of the truth. It's no fun there. It never is, and the people running it know that, too! They call it a youth prison without the cells and jumpsuits away from the other kids. Having the two of you as mentors is nice, but…you know what I've always needed in my life, Paul."

Nodding, he does understand. Paul knows that above all else, this kid, who will turn ten over the summer, wants a family to call his own. But families are only often interested in younger kids, such as infants and toddlers, leaving Jamie left with nothing but a bunk bed and a single pillow to look forward to during most nights. "It's tough," he sympathizes. "I couldn't even imagine that and I've been without my mom for over twelve years, but if you keep a positive attitude no matter what, I think you'll find it'll come back to you. Do you know of something called karma, Jamie?"

"Uh," he begins, thinking about it, "I remember something about things that go around and come around."

"That's about right," Paul answers. "The saying is 'what goes around comes around,' which generally means what you give is what you get. So when you are good to people, when you show good behavior and act in a positive way, you should expect to get that same feeling given back towards you from other people. Of course, the same can be said if one were to act out negatively and surly to the world and the people around him. They'll get their attitude thrown back at them. Do you understand?"

"Yeah and…I didn't mean to act like that to your brother."

"I know you didn't, kiddo," Paul states. "Reggie might seem…extreme at times, but he means well. I mean, he wants you to have a family as much as I do and that's as true as things can get."

"You're right," Jamie admits. "I kind of…lost my head there."

"Don't worry about it, little man. It happens to all of us," he replies giving him a hug. "Now, we're gonna set a few more things up before the party begins. Do you wanna see Ash's room? I could probably give you a tour I've seen it enough times. How does that sound?"

"Cool!"

"I thought so. Hey, Ash!" Paul says out loud. "Could you lead Jamie through a tour of your room and other parts of the house while we wrap things up with the party?"

It sounded like a fine idea and if Paul didn't suggest it right here and now, he would've led the nine-year-old to his room some point that day for a tour. "All right," Ash replies. "I think we're just about done with setting up, so I'll give him the crash tour and show him some of my devices and trophies that I've acquired over the years. You'll be fine with me showing Jamie around, right?"

"Yeah. Like you said, we're just about done with things in the kitchen," Delia responds. "Go ahead and we can talk some more about things later before the tournament begins." With these words, Ash and Paul lead young Jamie up the stairs so that he can have a look at all that one of his unofficial mentors has accomplished as a Pokémon trainer. When the three head up the stairs, Delia does her best to make sure that her son, his boyfriend and their young friend do not hear her words. "He's…an interesting young boy."

"He's been through quite a bit," Reggie says, not revealing the whole story without the permission of Jamie, "and while that does still leave him quite rough around the edges, he's really a kid just looking for a family. Who couldn't get behind something like that?"

"I agree," Professor Oak replies. "Perhaps we can talk about this some more in the kitchen. I don't know if I want to be around him speaking about these matters. It could trigger ill effects."

"You're absolutely right, professor," Reggie answers. "Let's take this in the kitchen," he adds, claiming that he isn't sure if he should say these things, but also noting, "What Jamie doesn't know won't hurt him."

* * *

Few would be surprised to know that there was some level of uneasiness in the Zarkowski/Treanoir hotel at the time. After the experienced swingers and the 'virgin' couple did all that they did last night and into this morning, few would be surprised. Conway and Holly never thought that they would explore bodies and experience sex quite that way in their young lives.

They did everything. At least, that's what it felt like when they got out of bed and said their good mornings to one another and also noticed that their partners weren't in the bed with them and could hear water running in the bathroom that didn't sound like it was coming from a sink.

For some time, they weren't able to say much to each other while retrieving their clothes from random spots in the room. With the exception of Conway noticing that Holly's armband is off and she's exposing her tattoo, not much is heard or spoken outside of the sound of flowing water. "Holly, you're showing…"

"I'm not worried about that, Conway," she admits while the two get out of bed and gather their clothes to head back to their room, change and check out. "It's not like they don't already know about Kieran. I pretty much bore my soul to them without talking about names because her family has gone through enough hell without people asking questions to them all the time…or me. There's no need for anyone outside of a few people to know this because it's my business and my business alone. Not even my folks know, at least I think, how I felt about Kieran. My secret…died with her and that's how it should stay."

Putting on his pants while listening to every word, he agrees with Holly's notion. "You're right about that. Talk about opening up a whole new can of worms while you're at the height of popularity, about to head overseas for tournaments and…why do people really need to know? She wasn't special to them at all and she was very special to you. I can't think of a much better argument for how special she was to you than if she had not gotten into that accident, you probably would still be with Kieran."

"That's not a slight in your direction, though," Holly clarifies, "but—you know that and we've talked about this all the time. It is what it is. I've gone through counseling and I've come to terms with her death, but…that doesn't mean that I'm over it, though," she admits as the shower water sounds as if it's stopped. "I loved her, but I can't live in the past. I love you now and…am honored that you would respect my wishes all this time even while I continue to have these feelings and express my deep-seeded feelings for other girls."

"It only makes sense, Holly," he replies. "It's not been quite like that for me, but having known Paul since milk and cookies were an appropriate after school snack, it's been in the back of my mind. It hasn't so much as stared me in the face as it has pricked me in the back and reminded me 'I'm here. Don't deny it because I'm a part of you,' but I really haven't. I just didn't know what to do about it until now and until you brought it to my attention as calmly as you could that you wanted to know what it felt like to have sex with another girl."

"A pretty…unique conversation that was."

"Yeah, but I thank you for bringing it up because…wow!" Conway remarks as he knows no other words accurate enough to describe what last night was like for him. "Kenny was passed out there for a second, you and Zoey made the sixty-nine look awesome and convinced Kenny to do the same with us even though we were into some real hardcore fucking. They know their stuff, I'll say that much. I learned a ton and I felt the connection that we had grow even stronger because we were there and living out our…for lack of a better word, fantasies."

"Yeah, I know," Holly speaks. For a few seconds, though, she and Conway keep silent as they are now completely dressed. She wonders if the people in the bathroom are hearing what she's saying. Talking so blatantly and explicitly about sex is not one of her strongest points, but not doing so elicits a reaction that she didn't expect.

"Well, go on," says a young man coming out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist and covering everything below that. "I sort of liked that conversation you were having there."

"Kenny!" Holly exclaims, taken somewhat by surprise.

"We're you expecting Valentino?"

"Well, no…but I didn't think that you'd be up so early after we did so much." Holly makes the point that, "I'm beat! We did a lot!"

"Do it enough _safely _and you'll get used to it," replies Zoey, wearing a black towel above her bust line before going over to her luggage and picking out an appropriate outfit for this afternoon's festivities. "Besides, Kenny and I are sort of in a hurry because we have to do some promotional work for the next Grand Festival in the Orange Islands this May."

"Yeah, leave it to the elite and illuminated folks in the contest offices to plan forward and think about the next big event to come."

"Well, that's true," Zoey speaks to Kenny, "not to mention the fact that we're the main participants in that Grand Festival in the eyes of Contesta and the others. So while May, Dawn, Marina, Solana, Ruby and the rest are competing today, we'll be hocking the next big show."

As Zoey continues to go through her bag, Kenny further explains, "Before two o'clock in the afternoon, we'll be doing interviews with all the big networks. Fuji, Sky Sports, ESPN, TSN, and Fox Sports are just a few of the networks that are gonna be covering it and because we're two of the biggest names at the festival, they think we'll bring some nice promotion to the sport because of that."

"Well, if nothing else," Conway figures, "you two are quite outspoken and will put a nice spin on things. What time do you have to do these interviews?"

"About nine o'clock, which is an hour from now," Kenny says, now going over to his bags to find something suitable to wear for this meeting with the press. "So we have to get dressed and check out because after this, we're guests at one of the after parties and from there…it's probably back home for us, right Zoey?"

"If we don't go to my home then we're probably going your way to Twinleaf come Tuesday," Zoey answers.

"Why not back to the Orange Islands?"

"Because, Holly, we've each already gotten our five ribbons," Kenny responds. "So there's no need to do that until we go back there to acclimate our Pokémon to the different weather for a week or so, but before that we're all gonna just relax and then get into some intense but gradual training by late-March."

"Two months of training for the Grand Festival?"

"Not every waking hour will be spent on training, mind you," Zoey replies, while she gets her black tie on and around the collar of her white, buttoned-down shirt. "There are rules that we have to follow, after all. Practice too much and we could forfeit our entries, so Kenny and I are gonna be taking on some…unorthodox training techniques in the next few weeks."

"Some of it is bound to get physical," Kenny admits while putting on his khaki pants, "but most of it is designed to get our friends acclimated to the competition they'll have to face in late-May."

"So there we have it," Zoey declares as she sees her boyfriend and herself sporting like tuxedos prior to their meeting with the media. "Are your bags packed?" she asks, referring to Conway and Holly. "I ask that because the two of us are out of here as soon as we leave."

"We didn't bring bags to this room," Holly clarifies, "but our clothes are on and we can leave whenever, right Conway?"

"Yeah, whenever you're ready. When we get back to our room, I think the plan is for us to shower and get dressed for the elimination rounds. We were invited to skybox number two by May and Kelly, though, so that's where we're gonna be located right after we leave and check out of our own hotel."

"All right, then. We'll see if we can't join the two of you there after we finish this business."

"Sounds like a plan, Kenny," Holly speaks. "Remember, we'll be in skybox number two."

"Number two; I've got it and we'll be there," Zoey replies, getting her umbrella for the walk over to the stadium. "Kenny, do you know where we have to meet the press?"

"Yeah, it's in press room 'C' at the box level. I'm not exactly sure but once there, I think the skyboxes are on that same level so we can join Kelly and you guys up there by then."

"All right, then. We're about to shut things down here, Conway and Holly." Zoey says while she carries her suitcase and Kenny does the same for his own. While she would like to say a few more things to Holly and talk to her about a theory and an idea that she has, she knows that there is no time for such conversation right now. Once her hands become untied and she no longer has these obligations to tend to, she can speak with her, but now is just not the time. "And, again, once the press gets our fill of us, we'll do our best to meet everyone in box two."

"Thanks," Conway responds. "I got the feeling that Kelly would like nothing more than for all of us to be there supporting May and this…is a united sign of us doing exactly that."

"Plus it'll be cool to sit in a skybox," Kenny adds. "You know all of the amenities that you get when you're up there in the box watching big tournaments?"

Shrugging his shoulders, he admits, "I've heard some stories."

"Everything's free," the youngest of the four teases, "and not to mention that Slateport has several three and four-star chefs are there preparing all three meals of the day for the participants and their guests. I'd say more—about a lot of things that took place here and will take place, but like Zoey said, we're in a _rush_," he says while zipping his bags for the weekend. "It's time, guys."

Indeed, it is time for them to move to the next step. Whether that step is promoting the next big Grand Festival Championship or going up with friends to the skybox of the Slateport Stadium to watch the big event play out before their eyes, it was a new step for the four of them beyond what took place several hours ago in the beds. For some, things have changed as their eyes have been opened to the possibilities of new heights being reached in the conquest of sexual pleasure and awakening.

For others, few things have changed. Life and love will go on and so will certain folks who haven't necessarily grown immune to the concept of coitus, but have a different perspective on the act the closer they get to nature. Either way, their out of hotel room 832 with the door locked, shaking hands and promising one another that this would not be the last time that they would see one another today.

* * *

There they lay; the five of them in their ranger uniforms sleeping in what appeared to be random places on the bed. Kellyn, Lunick, Solana, Jackie and Spenser sleep in their shared room with Spenser the only one inside the covers, appearing to get some semblance of a good night's sleep after Saturday never seemed to come to an end.

The crew knew that by virtue of their female compatriot's work, they would be guaranteed a hefty return on the one thousand dollar investment that all five of them made to enter the tournament. To celebrate this happening, the five went to a bar and stayed all night, drinking to their heart's content of bourbon, whiskey, cocktails, and Keystone beer with the lone exception being Spenser, who while having some drinks did not go overboard by anyone's imagination.

He appears to be the only one to drink responsibly and fall fast asleep despite the possibilities of a hangover, though, as Jackie is lying across his waist and Lunick is by the foot of the bed, flirting with the possibility of rolling and falling down to the ground. On the other bed, things aren't nearly as crowded but have quite an awkward appearance as Kellyn lies on the side of the sole female comrade and has his right arm wrapped around her body like a pillow or a nearby lover.

She doesn't seem to notice this and none of the five rangers do either as the heavy rain showers fall just outside their window. They know that Solana has to be up and ready for a production meeting early in the morning, so the alarm clock is set for fifteen minutes before seven o'clock for a planned eight o'clock powwow.

Then, as the storm outside of their window continues to rage, another sound of great impact reverberates, but only within their room as the alarm clock tells the rangers that it is now 6:45 in the morning and it's time for them, especially Solana, to get up. Spencer can hear it, but given how late he and his team members went to bed, he more or less ignores it thinking that the sound is just in his head like a bad dream where he has no choice but to wake up. On this occasion, though, he chooses otherwise.

His team has a slightly different reaction to the alarm. The first among them to hear it is Lunick, and it becomes very clear that he's had too much to drink when the first thing he does is moan while grabbing his temples causing his body to tilt to the very end of the bed.

Lunick's body thumps against the carpet and that causes his four comrades to begin stirring as he continues to moan and regret taking multiple shots of whiskey and vodka mere hours before now. Solana has now heard the ringing of what sounds like the alarm for about a minute combined with the moaning of her fellow Fiore region comrade and decides that since her 'reliable' teammates aren't going to turn off the clock, she'll do it.

The young lady makes this decision before opening her eyes to find the youngest member of this team, eighteen-year-old Kellyn, next to her like her favorite teddy bear. For a passing second, she found the image of the young man to be charming and cute, but quickly snapped back to reality when the rank stench of ethanol became very apparent on his mouth. "Oh, you've gotta be kidding me! And he told me that he'd watch what he'd drink to boot!" Solana then goes to remove the dead weight off of her athletic frame to no avail. Kellyn kept in fine condition just like her and was not going anywhere without the forces of nature conspiring in some fashion. Not knowing of any other strategy, she yells "Kellyn, get off of me!" hoping to get the message across her likely hung-over teammate.

"Huh?" he droopily questions as his eyes slowly open and he finds that he's tightly wrapped around his comrade like a lover. He'd back away, claim it as a mistake and apologize until his mouth went dry, but he just stayed there out of pure shock knowing that he found himself deep inside of this kettle of worms.

At the moment he was about to snap back to himself, his commander just had to make a snide comment as he rolled Jackie out of his way. "Hey, Kellyn. Congrats on making it to second base with Solana!"

Not caring much for the sexism or the smell of the hardest of spirits in the room, Solana scoffs before shoving Kellyn across the bed and down to the floor, onto the crawling but ignored Lunick, cushioning his fall at the expense of the older male ranger's back.

"Oh, goddamn it!" Lunick exclaims as he feels a weight, albeit lighter than his own, crash onto his back. When Kellyn rolls off him, his injured colleague turns his head and looks over to his left. He's landed by the bathroom door where his fallen friend's frame lies with him on the carpet. "What gives, Kellyn?"

"It wasn't me, 'Nick," he wearily responds. "Solana pushed me off the bed."

Working to get up off the floor, Lunick asks Kellyn, "And why did she push you off the bed?"

"Because," Solana answers for Kellyn, "it's time for me to head to the stadium. That's why we set the alarm, right?"

"It's time to go?" Jackie questions, his interests suddenly peaked by this revelation of sorts from his teammate. "Then let's hurry up! Come on! Time and money is wastin'! Where's my shirt!"

"God, you're one to talk, man!" Kellyn screams out as he attempts to stand up straight while finding a clean uniform to put on for later. "The alarm gave us an hour before we have to be at the stadium, the stadium walk is less than five minutes from the hotel and the money will come when it comes, so settle down!"

While the alarm in the room continues to sound, Solana gets more peeved at her male comrades who seem to lose more than their heads when they get hammered. Getting out of bed, she walks over to Kellyn and takes off what he thinks is one of his uniforms, proclaiming, "Damn idiot, this is mine! Can't you tell the difference?"

"Wait, really?" he asks her, having no clue that the uniform he picked up was Solana's until he notices that held up against her chest, it comes down to her waist. "Oh, son of a gun. It is yours."

"First it's treating me like I'm a stuffed animal and then you try to put on my clothing? Seriously, what's wrong with you guys?"

"It's too much hanging out with their good friends; Jack Daniels and Jim Beam," Spenser interjects to the ardent dismay of Solana who huffs on her way to the bathroom and, according to him, might've softly directed a slur in his direction; apparently for his flippantly snide remark.

While all this goes on, no one in the room even bothered to turn off the alarm, which has now been going for about five minutes. As Lunick, Jackie and Kellyn do their best to get the cobwebs out of their respective systems, he alleviates their apparent head pains by turning off the alarm and turning on the television to catch the local news and weather before heading out later that morning to the skybox; complimentary for Grand Festival finalists' friends and relatives…including, as the guide told him, gourmet cuisine, high-definition televisions and a minibar.

'What a day this has already been,' he concludes as a forecast of nothing but heavy rain showers shows up on the Sunday morning newscast.

* * *

A/N: Several…issues in my life (none too terrible at the moment) kept this from getting to you sooner, but it's finally here after almost five months. Next one, with the folks heading into the boxes, a stadium walkthrough and a production meeting, is bound to come sooner.

Also, be sure to check out the prequel to this story written by author **Newtype Omega**. It's called 'Where Moonlit Roads Meet' and tells in four parts how Kelly and May came together in the story. I highly recommend it and please be sure to drop a review, as well!

Until next time, this is Rave!


	42. Production Fears as Showtime Nears

All Roads Lead to the Grand Festival

Paul and Ash near completing prep work for their Grand Festival party when the first guests arrive. They are Professor Oak, Paul's older brother Reggie, and Paul's protégé, Jamie, a nine-year-old Scottish-Filipino orphan. Delia can't help but notice how much Jamie resembles Paul as he and Ash take Jamie up to their room.

Holly and Conway only have so much time to talk about last night's experiences as they must leave while Kenny and Zoey check out of their hotel and formally dress for a media meeting. Zoey did want to say something else to Holly during this time, but because the young swingers are so pressed for time, didn't get the chance.

Rangers Spenser, Jack, Lunick, Kellyn and Solana all had a long night of celebratory drinking for their female partner Solana making it to the top ten. This caused some chaos the morning after as Solana had to deal with some sexist remarks after Kellyn used her as a pillow for the night and she had to hurry to make sure she didn't miss the production meeting meaning automatic forfeiture.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, a creation of one Satoshi Tajiri, and is produced domestically (in the United States) by Pokemon USA/The Pokemon Company, and internationally by Shogakukan and OLM. I personally own nothing and make nothing by writing this. Please do not flame.

(Chapter 42- Production Fears as Showtime Nears)

* * *

The idea is nothing conceptually new. Having performers of all trades unite before a grand circular enclosure has been a staple form of entertainment for empires and unions of all sorts. Despite the fact that this has been done before and will continue to be done for millennia to come, it still takes the breath away of people who walk into a large arena, stadium or coliseum floor for the first time to witness a major event take place.

May, with Kelly, and the other fifteen competitors, with some having their own friends in tow, rounds can't believe just how grand the settings are, but are soon brought back to reality after being pelted by heavy raindrops which have continued since early this morning. They were told by those guiding them into the arena to equip themselves accordingly before they went outside and onto the arena floor. The group of sixteen was also informed not to speak or ask questions until they come back inside for a meeting.

Otherwise tense scenarios like May and Kelly confronting Savannah after her words from a night ago, Dawn just being nearby Drew given events going back at least a year and Kelly and May's insistence to just ignore Marina as best as possible are settled as the guides have wisely kept certain individuals apart from one another for the time being. They're being directed by officials to areas of relevance, including one of two civilian entrances, where some of the viewing public will watch the bouts from special folding chairs lined up in several rows and columns allowing as many people as possible to sit right by the action. Plastic tarps cover the chairs and the main stage as the rain continues to make its mark on the Slateport Stadium.

Performers of this day are not compelled to fight to the death to receive accolades like their counterparts of the past, but that doesn't make the prizes that they fight for any less worthwhile. As the group is lead through the floor, the coordinator's entrance is shown. It's shaped in the form of the Slateport City contest ribbon; colored in both green and lime green with a circular crown forming the entrance area for her and the fifteen others. The stage looks great and the contest officials have made it so that anyone from any angle can see the action as it takes place on giant television screens.

Given the inclement weather, the officials do their best to make sure that they get the coordinators inside as quickly as they can so no one ends up soaked or cold because of conditions. Usually the arena walkthrough would take about fifteen minutes, but officials concerned with the rain finished the arena tour in less than ten minutes and brought everyone back by the entranceway for further instructions.

There is some desire from the coordinators along with their friends and loved ones to engage in conversation at this time. They are well aware, however, that doing that would be in violation of the rules and are just waiting for what to do next. "Okay, everyone!" a female official suddenly speaks. "We apologize for that little delay there. Information just keeps coming to us at a lightning pace. In any case…to the sixteen coordinators and only the sixteen coordinators, you have five minutes to say goodbye to the people accompanying you or over the phone before you will be required to follow officials upstairs for the mandatory production meeting. They will not be allowed in that meeting, but after our business you can speak with them. We expect this meeting to last at least two hours. All right. Take five, people and let's get this show on the road."

The spectacular sixteen split suddenly, those who are not interested in being cramped with adversaries go into the corner to speak with friends over the phone or in person. The split was so sudden that May and her fiancée, who had every intention of going to a corner to speak, did not have to as the entrance area didn't have a person within a fifteen meter radius.

Kelly sighs, well aware of her situation and ticked off that she only has a few minutes to get this done. Gently holding onto May's shoulders and making sure that she doesn't intentionally aggravate her right hand, she says, "Well, we've reached the end of my run as your trainer. After this time, I have to entertain our family and friends in the skybox and then we can seriously, _seriously_ talk about our future plans going forward. Nevertheless, we've been at it for the last four weeks and…It's all on your shoulders now, May. I can only hope that you've taken in everything that everyone has told you.

"God knows I couldn't have come up with half of the stuff Paul, Ash, Zoey, your folks and others have taught us. Despite that, I truly believe that your father knew what he was doing when he made me your trainer. I'm not the best coordinator; to be honest, I'm not even close, but we've learned so much together here. We've learned that you are a very persistent person while I can be a true hard ass when I set my mind to a master plan. There's no turning back for us when we're dedicated. I feel our strength—I feel _your_ strength growing. For what it's worth, even in the midst of all the bullshit this weekend, I still see you as the prize horse to beat and if you give it your all, you'll never fail."

"Thank you. That truly means the world coming from you." This pep talk has May close to tearing up right as she has to keep her eye on the prize. She gives Kelly a toothy smile before questioning her mood at this point even in the face of many words of encouragement from her bride-to-be. "Why am I such a wuss when it comes to this?"

"You're not," Kelly assures May. "Not even close."

"Well, why am I like this right now, Kelly?"

"Because you care, May, and with so many things that have been happening, Ice Cold Marina about a stone's throw from us, Drew and Dawn's soap opera, Solana thinking she can be the next Francis Ouimet, the Van Hollens in our business—well, Savannah at least, and your…just beautiful proposal to me, you've held it together through it all. I think you're the furthest thing from a wuss imaginable. Showing emotion or crying does not make you a coward or crybaby or anything of that sort.

"You care about what I have to say about you and I care, too. You want this badly and we've worked so hard to make this a reality. We're so close, May, and even though it's on you to make your dream come true, I have faith in you, girl. You can do it. Damn it, I just know it. I feel it right here, May." At this point Kelly takes her girlfriend's right hand and places it by the center of her chest to emphasize her point. "If you have butterflies in your stomach, that's not the same as doubting your abilities. We all have them, May. In fact, I have them right now."

"Kelly?"

Before May can get out her response to her fiancée, she hears a Grand Festival official saying "One minute left until we go to the meeting, ladies and gentleman! It's time to wrap up your conversations at this time."

Balling a fist up near her mouth, May has to come up with something and quick. She looks her future wife in the eye and speaks. "Kelly, thank you so much for all that you've done this past month. I have just one request for you though. I know I haven't asked for much, but I really want this."

"What's that?"

"Promise me…that no matter what happens this afternoon, win or lose, that you will be by my side and that I can share the time with you as long as I may need it."

Did she have to ask? It didn't matter. Kelly figures that May just needed the assurance. Well, she's got it and if the embrace didn't tip her off, then the shorter girl leaning in and whispering the words, "Always…and forever."

"Thank you. I feel I'm gonna need someone close."

"The pleasure is all mine," Kelly remarks while still wrapped up in a hug with her sweetheart. "Hey, who's your girl?"

"You are, and only you," May answers as they interlock left hands in their personal symbol of solidarity once more.

Regrettably, Kelly knows that she has to get out of this embrace. Before that, though, she does give May a kiss on the lips, steps back and declares, "That one's for good luck. Now I really have to go. My folks are gonna expect me to be in the box soon."

"Let everyone up there know that I really appreciate them coming and all of their help," May says quickly as she sees the officials out of the corner of her eye directing people to a nearby elevator. "Now shake a leg! I've got a Grand Festival to win."

"Yes, ma'am," Kelly replies. Turning around, she doesn't get far, though, before she feels a stinging rap across her backside.

Looking behind her, she's met with a Cheshire cat's smile on her fiancée's face as she runs for the elevator and the meeting. "Told you I'd get you back!" are the last words she hears from the older girl before the enormous elevator doors close in front of her and Kelly loses her reason for procrastinating another second longer than necessary.

She doesn't head upstairs immediately, though. Fleeting thoughts of the woman she aspires to spend her life with enter Kelly's mind before she gets to her job at hand much like her fiancée.

* * *

The group of sixteen has been walking around the third level of the stadium now for about three minutes since exiting the elevator. Some of notable coordinators who have gone through this procedure before are growing restless, but no one in the assembly hears much of it as the officials open large double doors labeled 'conference room'.

It is here they find a large table with more than twenty chairs surrounding it, Director Contesta, the broadcast director and two of his assistants already seated and with stacks of papers next to them. Contest officials get everyone seated and once that takes place and everyone is in a spot where they would be comfortable, they take requests for refreshments and finally call the meeting to order.

"Ladies and gentleman," Contesta begins, "I thank all of you for promptly arriving to this very important and worthwhile production meeting. As I understand from my assistants, you were all outside not even twenty minutes ago, so you are likely all aware of the most unique conditions we face putting on this very big event. With the rain likely to stay until about 5 p.m. local time, the conditions are, to put it mildly, very sloppy. Despite that, we can make this 2010 Hoenn Grand Festival a grand success if we just follow a few simple instructions.

"With that, I'll turn the floor over to the television director for this occasion who will outline the dos and don'ts for this afternoon's elimination rounds. Ken, take it away."

"Thank you, Raoul," speaks the longtime director of major Pokémon programming, Ken Garrett. Addressing his audience while they enjoy their drinks and breakfast pastries, he deviates from his traditional words of encouragement to say, "Everyone, I just checked with my statistician before preparing my notes for this morning. This is the first time since 1991 that we're able to say we have a 'sloppy' Grand Festival. That's before a few of you were born, I'm sure. It doesn't have to be that way to the worldwide television audience and it won't be if you follow these important directions. I'll begin with what I believe is the most important. Although entering the stage has rarely been an issue with me and I always encourage trainers and coordinators to exercise their creativity when they come in for their match, I have to lay down the line and order that for safety reasons, _nobody_ will be permitted to run or jog while walking down the ramp way. Just walk to the stage and be done with it for the sake of not embarrassing yourselves.

"We will expedite opening ceremonies due to the rain, as well. The anthems, coordinator introductions and all other ballyhoo will be limited to twenty seconds for each of you instead of thirty. Trust me. It may not seem like much, but that time will fly. Now, your sideline reporter from yesterday, former Top Coordinator Robert Weis, will unfortunately not be able to join us for the elimination rounds this afternoon. He is currently down because of laryngitis and…I have to give him some credit. He wanted to be here badly, but if you can't speak clearly and consistently as a television field reporter, it won't work. Thankfully, we were able to get some help from two very knowledgeable coordinators on short notice and they'll sit in for a portion of this meeting as soon as they fulfill another commitment."

A few coordinators show some disappointment that Robert won't be a part of the big day, but fully realize that his health must come first and continue to listen to Ken's words.

"Everyone will be allowed to dress up today, but given the inclement weather; you do that at your own risk and are encouraged to wear ponchos at all times while outside and not umbrellas as umbrellas do not make for great television shots. We want everyone at home to see as much of you as possible and it won't help anyone to see just a giant parasol blocking every droplet of rain and your faces to boot.

"The next order of business is your obligation to the press and this presentation. For everyone here, your first duty to this broadcast will be to do sit-down interviews in the studios just across the hall. They'll take place after this meeting. Your personal room number should be in your individual packets and we plan on interviewing four of you at a time in separate stations.

"This will leave you about two hours to warm up with your Pokémon before coming back for opening ceremonies. Just before your matchups, you will do interviews of approximately a minute with a sideline reporter. They will take place just by the stage entrance. Nearly all of these interviews will be tape delayed. Should you make a mistake, you have about five minutes of breathing room in the interview to cover for them. Afterwards, you'll have your match and then go to a post interview, which unless we're coming out of a commercial break will always be live and be about a minute long, so no matter what keep all profanity down to a 'damn' or a 'hell' and keep strong or offensive words to your fellow coordinators to a minimum. Contesta will fine anyone who breaks these rules.

"Losing coordinators will go to the pressroom afterwards and answer questions for no more than ten minutes each and all mandatory commitments to the press and the broadcast will cease. Everyone will spend time in the press room because it's there where you will receive your VIP badge for the official Grand Festival after party and banquet. The top four coordinators will take longer because they'll do additional post interviews. Just follow the directions of the Slateport Stadium map on where to go for those and save all questions for the end of my speech.

"Now for the final four in today's tournament, your guests, should you have them here, will join you stage side for the semi-final, third place and final matchups. Several things will happen very quickly after the final match. We'll have about two minutes of celebration, confetti, a playing of _We Are the Champions_, and, should weather allow it, fireworks around the stadium. We will further elevate the stage floor so everyone can see the trophy presentation. Then we'll have a speech from Director Contesta and comments from the Top Coordinator and his or her party before the winner goes to the press room for final interviews alongside Contesta and other officials."

Looking through the packets given to her, Sandra gets a refresher of what's to come. Given that she's done this twice before, only some of this is news to her. She can only imagine the feeling of her mother who has gone through seven of these meetings or any of the older teens and adults. As she looks around the boardroom table, the only exception to the bored faces she finds is Pokémon Ranger Solana, right across from her and next to Brianna, who attentively looks at her notes and takes even more of them as Ken talks about delays in the event of lightning, fog or heavy and sustained downpours.

Sandra could've sworn she heard someone sigh while Ken continued to speak about the obligations of the coordinators to the premium channel networks and the reminder that there, their conversations can be uncensored if they wish. She didn't blame them, whoever it was. After the day came to an end, everyone would be doing so much talking on screen that they would curse the invention of flash photography and be happy to have a break from the paparazzi if only for the time being and until they elect to make another journey.

"The broadcast will be shown all around the world, as you might expect from the more than two hundred press credentials you see in your packet. It will be available on DVD, Blu-Ray and digital distribution formats. You will all receive royalties for the production and Raoul can speak more on that matter and the subject of your duties after the day ends for you, the top sixteen. Mr. Contesta? I turn the floor back to you."

"Thanks, Ken," Contesta says. "Now that all of you have been given your lecture as to your responsibilities and duties to this broadcast, I'm speaking to each of you now because you are the sixteen who have the opportunity to win the 2010 Hoenn Grand Festival. These are your rankings from seed number sixteen to seed number one.

"Number sixteen is Mollie Stewart, number fifteen is Lila Morena-Harmon and number fourteen Chaz Michael Grayson. Number thirteen is Jeremy Fenton, number twelve is Solana Roubanis, and number eleven is Marina Del Raymond.

"In the top ten starting with number ten is Timmy Grimm, then Ruby White at number nine and Kyle Miller is the eighth seed and the last coordinator to have 'command choice'. Number seven is Brianna Nolan, six is Jessminder Mentrovia and Sandra Van Hollen is number five. Savannah Van Hollen is fourth, Drew Emerson is number three, number two is May Maple and number one seed with command choice throughout is Dawn Berlitz. Like in all tournaments, high seed meets low in the first round and per the rules of Hoenn's Grand Festival there will be no reseeding to ensure best possible final round matchups.

"When you battle, you will use two Pokémon each and be bound to a time limit of five minutes. To win any match, you must have your team perform well enough to retain more hit points than your opponents. You and your Pokémon will be judged according to execution of battling skill, stage control, stage presence, tandem teamwork between Pokémon and effectiveness of the commanding coordinator, that being yourselves. If one member of your team is unable to battle, that Pokémon must be removed from the field within ten seconds or you will be docked hit points from your score. If both members of your team are unable to continue, the clock will stop and the match will end. Myself, Mr. Sukizo, and the three Joys serving as judges reserve the right to stop any match at any time via unanimous decision and all decisions, whether from the referee or the judges, are final.

"This afternoon's first elimination matchup will be between seeds number eight and nine; that's Kyle and Ruby, respectively. We'll then have seeds seven and ten meet and go down the line to the one and sixteen matchup. You will be paid based on your final rankings with the sixteenth coordinator being the one who got knocked out the quickest or had the lowest HP if none of the first-round contestants get knocked out. That will set nine through sixteen and the same goes for five through eight. The final four will sort itself out through match play, but if that doesn't get your attention, I know this will."

With those words, Contesta gets up from his seat and walks towards an easel next to the table to tear off a sheet of black contact paper from a cardboard table showing the payouts for each finishing position. Raoul did get the attention of the sixteen as they saw that even if they bombed in the first round, they would not leave Slateport City without earning at least a quarter of a million dollars.

"We at the Pokémon Contest Administration," Contesta says as if he's delivering a spiel, "are so proud to be able to guarantee each member of this Grand Festival's final four at least a million dollars. Winning one elimination round will net you at least half a million and you can see the rest of the totals on the chart, but I'm sure each of you have your eye on the number at the very top. Yes, the winner will earn a purse that all told should equal four million dollars after receiving the Hoenn Ribbon Cup, serving as the Grand Marshal of your own hometown parade this coming Wednesday and going on a mandatory two week winner's tour around North America."

It all sounds so appealing, especially to the young people knowing that they would get quite the pretty penny before the day went into the books. Contesta was right as everyone suddenly sat up straight in their seats and did their best to get a look at just what it is they were competing for today.

To this point, the meeting has been quite the bore fest, especially for those who know have gone through eliminations so often they know them like the back of their hand, but speaking on the subject of money and notoriety will always get people's attention and this time was no exception.

If only the meeting could end in the minds of most, though, so they can start applying their craft like no other coordinators in the world. That would be the moment many of these trainers will be on cloud nine. Once that happens and the day comes to an end, the money is sure to follow and bound to be quite the perk.

* * *

Knowing full well the number of people she expects in the skybox for this afternoon's festivities, Kelly is quite aware that she has no time to waste. Running back to the arena lobby, she catches her breath as she arrives at the front desk carrying three signed letters in her left hand while wearing around her neck what appears to be a press credential with a large quick response code in the middle of it.

Finding an open counter at the arena box office, she greets and then informs the attendant, "I'm here to claim skybox number two for the Grand Festival. I have the signed release form of May Maple granting me permission to do so along with both of our parent's consent."

Taking all of the forms along with scanning Kelly's pass, her attendant, with the nametag reading 'Natasha', files all this information into computers for record keeping purposes. The process doesn't take too long, about three minutes if Kelly is to believe a large LED clock on the wall of the lobby, but the teen prodigy is admittedly a little impatient knowing that she has to be the host for many people who've come a long way to see this tournament.

Eventually, Kelly gets her necklace back along with instructions to wait for an usher to escort her to get her key. "Okay Miss Cruz-Marin, once you get the key and its copy, you'll be able to go in and get started. How many are you expecting in the box?"

"Anywhere from ten to fifteen people," she replies.

From a side door enters a young gentleman in a black blazer with a Pokémon contest emblem on his right breast. Natasha extends her right hand in his direction, explaining "Nathan here will take you to the office to get the keys. Once you have them, he'll give you your final instructions."

He directs her to come to an elevator with a sign reading 'authorized personnel only'. She's never had the chance or opportunity to sit in the skybox of the Slateport Stadium making this experience foreign to Kelly.

Despite that, her accompanier seeks to make her feel welcome while they make the slow ride up the elevator and to the executive offices. "So you're traveling with May Maple for this weekend?"

Not expecting much conversation, Kelly momentarily snaps out of her concentration to digest the question and answer "Yeah. Both of our families and our friends are here for the occasion. I've trained her for the past month and…it's all in her hands now. I just hope she can do it. If anyone deserves it, it's her. I just have a feeling deep down that this is her year. I couldn't stand it if she went through more heartache, but if she sticks to the plan, she can't lose."

"Most people do think she's got the best shot today," Nathan affirms, "but there is the little matter about the rain. May, though…she's a competitor and she won't make that an excuse if her Blaziken can't handle the downpours. You know, the way you're talking it sounds like May is someone very special to you," he concludes.

'More than you could possibly imagine, Nathan,' she ponders, but what actually comes out of her mouth amounts to a more cryptic response. "Yeah, that's my girl." Not a response particularly out of the ordinary, but only she and May know the true meaning and extent of those words. "I first met her when she just started coordinating at age ten and I've been one of her most ardent supporters ever since. She's my best friend, but…she's much more, you know?"

"I understand," he speaks as the elevator door opens to a corridor leading to a double-door entry. Using the automatic button, they then enter a room marked 'Press/VIP Credentials' and using a key card, Nathan makes his way inside with Kelly following right behind. Turning to face her, the young runner instructs Kelly "Wait by this window here and we'll have you all set."

That takes virtually no time at all as Nathan shows up on the other side of the Plexiglas box fiddling with a computer mouse before typing in several combinations and waiting for some information to load.

Once he receives what he's looking for, the Slateport Stadium assistant gets up from his seat and uses his personal key card to open a filing cabinet and pull out two credit card sized cards which he slides through card readers. Once the system approves the transfer and matches the names, Nathan places the two cards to the side and goes back to the computer to print out further information. As he explains, "I'm giving you the floor plan for the stadium and that should give you the quickest route to your box.

"While that prints, I want to go over the list of people permitted to join you in the box or, in other words, those who are on the list."

"Sure. Name them off."

"Okay, right now I have on the list, aside from yourself, Norman, Caroline, Erik, Julia, Max, Harley, Brock, Lucy, Conway, Holly, Leo, Sara, Kenny and Zoey. Are all of those correct?"

"Well those last two, Zoey and Kenny, are no longer on the list," Kelly corrects. "I just learned this morning they won't be able to join us in the box because of an emergency commitment."

Typing into his computer he remarks, "So Zoey Zarkowski and Kenny Treanoir are scratched from the list." Looking up, he asks, "Is there anyone that I might have forgotten or that you want to add right now?"

"No, I thought about a few friends from Mossdeep City, but they called me back and said they're gonna watch from home."

"That's no problem," Nathan assures Kelly. "If anyone calls you from now until the semifinals, they can be added on the fly. Just request it from your complimentary phone. Okay we're about set here, Kelly." Putting the two key cards underneath the cashier's slot, he says, "Please do not lose those cards, have them stolen if you can help it or give them to someone you cannot trust or who isn't on your list. The fine for a replacement card is five hundred dollars.

"While in the skybox, all drinks, food and other amenities cost money but will be debited from the allowance Miss Maple put onto the box which was, according to the computer, ten thousand dollars. As I see it, should your party go over the allowance, May has authorized us to deduct the money from her purse up to an additional ten thousand dollars."

Everything Nathan is saying is true and required only a nod of affirmation from Nathan before he went on to speak about the time to turn in the keycards. "Is there anything else that I can get for you or you need clarification for before you leave?"

"I can't think of anything else, but thanks for all of your help."

"Hey, the pleasure is mine. Enjoy the show, Kelly!"

"Thank you and have a great day," she says making her way to the door.

"Oh, Kelly! Wait! Wait up!" She doesn't get too far before Nathan calls her again and she follows him back to the glass where he has a white envelope in his right hand. "I forgot to give you this message May wanted her party to read before the matchups. She gave specific instruction that no one was to read this until everyone in your party arrives or the Grand Festival begins, whichever comes first. Here you go."

Kelly had no clue that this letter existed. May never said anything about it and she's been around May near constantly for the past several days. When could she find the time to write this letter? Well, those points are moot right now. She's got a letter and she's been trusted to respect the wishes of her fiancée and not read it until its time. "Thanks for giving me this. I had no idea she wrote it."

"Well, she was quite adamant about everyone in your party hearing this one," Nathan speaks. "Another three seconds and I would probably be on her bad list for not getting you that letter."

"It must be something special if she insisted so much. Thanks again."

"You're welcome Kelly and, again, please enjoy the Grand Festival!"

"I will, Nathan," Kelly answers. "Thanks for all your help," those are her last words before leaving this special box office and walking back towards the elevator according to the floor plan.

While in the elevator, she pulls out her phone and begins composing a text for everyone who will join her in the box later. As she leaves for the box, Kelly almost completes the message signaling everyone that they can come to the stadium now because she's got the keys to the skybox.

"Almost show time," she remarks as she gets closer to the club boxes. While looking around behind her and to both sides, she walks off to the side gets down to her knees and begins praying for a great, safe day for all the trainers and coordinators and "For all that's right to soon eclipse what's been wrong for far too long. I ask these things in your name, my heavenly father, Amen."

* * *

A/N: This has been a long, long time coming and numerous situations aside, which I won't bore you with, I've gotten it together and released this chapter. Late May or June will be the next release and should be much longer than this one.

For anyone confused about Kelly mentioning Francis Ouimet, he was the winner of the 1913 U.S. Open in Golf. He was an amateur who defeated the best professional golfers of the time in an 18-hole playoff. Not only was he the first amateur to win the U.S. Open, it was his very first U.S. Open and he won it at his home course in Brookline, Massachusetts. His story of his incredible upset has been dramatized in book form and in the 2005 film _The Greatest Game Ever Played_.

Stay tuned for that and until then, this is Rave!


End file.
